Our New Baby (How Do I Feel About)

Discusses the fun and frustration of coping with being a big brother or sister to a new baby, the disruption to the normal family life, and the sharing of the parents' time, attention, and love

Kindergarten-Grade 4-Two useful self-help titles with simple, clear texts and a mix of full-color cartoon drawings and photographs. The format is basically the same for both: the problem or concerns are stated, questions are addressed, and factual information and suggestions are provided. The children range in age from six to eight years old and are of different ethnic origins. In both books, they reflect realistic feelings: anger at parents divorcing, fear of not being loved or cared about, being replaced by a new sibling, etc. Neither title breaks new ground in the area of coping with these situations but the language is clear and children come away with the feeling that parents and friends can help and that problems can be resolved. There are a number of books for preschoolers on these topics, but these titles represent older children. While there is much information for youngsters reading on their own, the texts offer many opportunities for adult interaction. Simple and straightforward.
Susan Lissim, Dwight School, New York City
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

This entry in the How Do I Feel About series is a delightfully frank exploration of sibling sentiment when a baby joins (or is about to join) the household. Green (see review, above) features four models of different ages, sizes, and races and ass igns them personalities and family situations (some have step-parents), and through dialogue balloons displays their feelings on a number of topics: worries about not being loved anymore or ignored, troubles that simply arise from new circumstances, anger that comes from having to share a parent's time, and the heavy demands a baby places on the entire household in terms of sleep and attention. The author offers sensible responses to these feelings--how they are natural, how the love and caring in a famil y stays the samewithout diminishing that there are changes afoot and it is time to prepare for them. The drawback is the inept design of the book, with cut-out photographs of the children pasted onto pages of cartoons and text. (Picture book. 6-8) -- Copyright ©1998, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.