Are baby sisters more trouble than they are worth? Rosie thinks so.
Rosie and Buttercup by Chieri Uegaki (Kids Can Press, ISBN 1-55337-997-7) is a charming picture written for girls, ages 3 to 7. The story is endearing and the illustrations are beautiful.
The Story
Life for Rosie is grand. She has a mother and father who love her. She has ballet lessons and voice lessons. She has two pet crickets and a bag of delicious dandelion puffs. No little rodent girl has ever had it better.
Then, Rosie’s parents bring home a new family member, Buttercup. Rosie loves her new baby sister. Rosie sings to her, plays silly sock games with her, and puts on ballet shows for her.
However, as little Buttercup grows bigger, she gets into more of Rosie’s stuff. Rosie starts to put her little sister in the time-out tent for no real reason other than she wants to be left alone. She remembers how quiet it was before Buttercup came along.
Rosie is tired of playing big sister. After a battle with Buttercup over the two pet crickets, Rosie decides to get rid of her little sister.
Rosie puts Buttercup in the stroller and they go to the neighbor’s house. Rosie hands her little sister over to Oxford and, feeling that she has found a good home for Buttercup, starts to walk away. As she goes, she gets a strange feeling in her chest.
Back at her home, Rosie notices how quiet the house is. She begins to do all the things she has wanted to do for so long, but couldn’t because her little sister was always in the way. She munches on some dandelion puffs, but then she starts to get bored. She tries to teach her pet crickets new tricks with a hoop, but that also becomes boring.
Rosie looks around the room. She sees her baby sister’s toys and gets that strange feeling in her chest again. She realizes that she misses her little sister.
Adorable Picture Book
It’s often difficult for children to learn to accept a new sibling. They find that they have to share their toys and sometimes even their pets. Spending time alone also gets harder when there is a new person in the house.
Rosie and Buttercup addresses sibling problems and brings to light that, while a younger sister can sometimes be a pain, having a little sister around can be loads of fun. This is an adorable and charming story that is sure to bring smiles and open up family discussions concerning belongings and sharing.
