Sibling rivalry will never end, but Judy Blume has found a way to peek into the endearing moments that go unsaid between brothers and sisters. The Pain is the first grade brother, nicknamed by his sister for obvious reasons. The Great One is his third grade sister, also nicknamed for obvious reasons such as she wants to be a princess when she grows up, well, until her friend Emily asks her, then she's not sure. Throughout this illustrated novel, the Pain and the Great One fight and despise one another, but although they'll never admit it, they are encouraged by each other too. The point of view in this novel switches back and forth from the Pain to the Great One which keeps the reader on his toes and always surprised when one of the child's real names is used. While the narrative may be a bit advanced for a first and third grader, the actions and reasoning follows right along with reality. This would be a fun book to read aloud to your children, but I think most kids would rather read it quietly. Caution: If you are having your parents read this aloud to you, they may be tempted to say adult-ish things like, "See, honey, the Pain really does love his older sister, don't you think you should too?" So if you want to keep the fact that you really do love your brother and sister, then I suggest reading this one quietly to yourself.
No comments:
Post a Comment