reS-Gr 2-A young narrator decides that being a big sister is fun. She enjoys bathing her baby brother, teaching him how to eat, and clapping his feet to make him smile. However, once he starts to get in her way, she asks if he can be sent back. She is relieved to leave her sibling behind to go to school, but he is there to be taught new things when she returns home. The final page has the lyrics and score for an original song, "I Was Born to Be a Sister." Realistic illustrations depict a family engaging in everyday activities such as preparing food, celebrating a birthday, and reading. The child's expressions of emotions are appropriate; however, the amateurishly executed art done in muddy colors is less than mediocre. Marc Brown's Arthur's Baby (Little, Brown, 1987), Eloise Greenfield's She Come Bringing Me That Little Baby Girl (HarperCollins, 1993), Lucy Cousins's Za-Za's Baby Brother (Candlewick, 1995), and Russell Hoban's A Baby Sister for Frances (HarperCollins, 1964) all do a better job of addressing the topic.
Olga R. Kuharets, Public Library of Charlotte & Mecklenburg County, NC
Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
From Booklist
Ages 3-7. The narrator of this story is thrilled when her parents bring home a new baby brother from the hospital. She loves singing to him, playing with him, and teaching him to slurp spaghetti. But as he gets a little older and starts destroying her toys and interfering with her life, some of the joy wears off, and she's less enamored: "Maybe he can move into his own apartment." In a rather abrupt ending, however, she realizes that she loves her brother and is glad he's around. The emotions ring true, but the simple story, written by a sixth-grader, offers little that is new. Best is the watercolor artwork, which has solid child appeal. Not a first purchase except, perhaps, in places where stories written by kids are in demand. Marta Segal
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
See all Editorial Reviews
