Julius, the Baby of the World

Rating:
Summary: I wouldn't have bought this if I'd read it first
Review: Maybe this book would be a good thing for an older child who could understand that the behavior described in the book might be meant as something funny and not be OK to try, but I don't plan to read it to my 2 1/2 year old. It features a big sister who is having a tough adjustment to a new little brother (so far so good), but it goes into descriptions of a degree of negativity and acting out that I am not really looking to introduce my child to or read about over and over. The new big sister is pictured leaning over the baby's crib saying: "I hate you. You're ugly." In our family, we just don't talk to each other like that. The girl makes up a story for her brother in which she says he is a germ, a zero, like dust under the bed, like dirt...If my child had come up with doing this sort of thing on her own, I'd have to think hard about whether reading a story like this would be helpful. Since she hasn't come up with this kind of behavior, I don't really want to plant the seeds by reading this together. I thought Susan Winter's A Baby Just Like Me was much better, and my daughter loves that book. I also liked Geraldine's Baby Brother.

Rating:
Summary: new baby on the way?
Review: This book, cleverly disguised as a children's story, is in my top five faves. It rings so true and is so hilarious, I sometimes read it for my own pleasure, even when my children aren't interested. A wonderful story for a kid around four or five with a new sibling on the way/recently arrived. Wonderful text and excellent illustrations; I practically know it by heart!