When Vera Was Sick [Hardcover]

Vera Rosenberry (Author, Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 4 and up

When Vera gets the chicken pox, her mom puts her in the spare bedroom and brings in the Kitty--the big, soft pillow with arms. It's lonely and dark in the spare room, and the wallpaper looks like it's making scary faces at Vera. Try as she might, Vera can't sleep. All she can do is scratch her spots.

But being sick has its rewards. Her mother reads her picture books, her father sings her lullabies, and her sister treats her to checker games. It's not long before Vera feels like her old self again.

Any child who has experienced the woes of being sick will find sweetness and humor in this charming story about one brave little girl.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

PreSchool-Grade 1-This story follows Vera from the onset of her illness, when fever, spots, and nausea confine her to bed in a darkened room, through her recovery. Mother is solicitous with orange juice, hot soup, calamine lotion, stories, and a big stuffed pillow to hug. Father brings flowers and sings Vera to sleep, and big sister June helps her pass the time with games of Chinese checkers. The tedium, discomfort, and confinement of an extended illness, ameliorated by warm surroundings and a compassionate and loving family, are well portrayed. Colorful ink-and-gouache illustrations capture a forlorn little girl with dark circles under her eyes, frightened by fever-induced hallucinations; scratching, scratching, scratching; and wistfully watching children outside playing. The pictures deftly portray the mood of the story, from somber at the start, to exuberant at the finish, as Vera throws off her pajamas, pulls on her clothes, and cartwheels out to play.
Marie Orlando, Suffolk Cooperative Library System, Bellport, NY
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

...a compelling story.... [and] a lovely book. -- The New York Times Book Review, Jim Latimer

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Henry Holt and Co. (BYR); 1st edition (October 15, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0805054057
• ISBN-13: 978-0805054057
• Product Dimensions: 10.2 x 8.2 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.9 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,869,062 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Story!, March 17, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: When Vera Was Sick (Hardcover)

We first borrowed this book from our local library and my two and a half year old son loved it so much we had to renew it three times! He just loves having it read over and over. He talks about Vera all the time as if she is a part of our family.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderfully illustrated!, January 29, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: When Vera Was Sick (Hardcover)

Rosenberry has done a marvelous job of depicting a sick child! In fact, the pictures remind me of my nieces when they are sick!

4.0 out of 5 stars A bit scary, July 13, 2010

By 

A. Pause "amazon addict" (nh) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: When Vera Was Sick (Paperback)

This is a very nice book, about a little girl who gets very sick and has to stay in bed for several days. The images are beautiful, the story well written. My almost 4 year old son is fascinated by this book. However, there was a part in the book where she is "hallucinating" and the flowers on the wallpaper are looking like witch faces coming out at her. My son was very curious and scared by this page and talked about it for days, even had some nightmares. However, he still asked us to read him the book. We took a break from it, had some talks about "imagination" and now we are able to read it and he seems comfortable with it.