A case of “be careful what you wish for” turns into a dream come true in this adorable book for our 5- and 6-year-olds about welcoming a new baby into a Jewish family.
Mira desperately wants a sister, and eventually her mum obliges and has a baby girl. But the new baby won’t stop crying, and she’s loud. Mira tries everything she can think of to calm her down, from doing cartwheels to playing her recorder, but to no avail. Mira’s not quite so enthusiastic about the baby anymore.
The colourful illustrations and use of white space give the book an attractive contemporary look that perfectly captures the warmth and humour of the story: the “waaaa” winding its way around the white space in red type cleverly mirrors the baby’s disruptive wailing during various domestic scenes.
Alongside the book’s universal theme of a new baby in the family is a specifically Jewish theme. The family is preparing for a simchat bat, a Jewish ceremony that celebrates the birth of a daughter, and at which the baby is named. All week Mira and her parents try and fail to think of a suitable name for the new arrival. On the big day, true to form, the star of the event cries her way through the rabbi’s words. Then Mira starts to sing. The baby stops screaming and starts cooing, and suddenly her parents know exactly what her name is. The book’s personalisation of the simchat bat is a great springboard for PJ families to create meaningful rituals for their own homes and communities.
Warm and whimsical, funny and moving, A Song for My Sister is one of those picture books that makes you say ”Ahhh”
July 22, 2019