Review - A Little Sister for Brady: A Story About Accepting & Embracing Change

A Little Sister for Brady: A Story About Accepting & Embracing Change (The Little Labradoodle #3)
by April Cox
illustrated by Harry Aveira
Date: 2021
Publisher: Little Labradoodle Publishing
Reading level: C
Book type: picture book
Pages: 32
Format: e-book
Source: Amazon.com

Having a new baby is a thrilling change, but for an older sibling, it can also be a confusing time.

How can you help your child adjust, and accept their new sibling with an open heart?

A Little Sister for Brady is a beautifully illustrated story with relatable characters and social emotional learning around this important topic.

Unlike other sibling books, the story highlights some initial friction as our little labradoodle adjusts to sharing his toys, treats and even his humans with his new baby sister.

Brady quickly grows to love his sister and we see a shift in his emotions as he learns to accept and embrace the big change.

(synopsis from Amazon.com; see it on Goodreads)

This brightly illustrated picture book will probably appeal to children. It's a rhyming story, and the rhythm isn't bad, so it's suitable for reading aloud.

I was a bit confused, though, with the progression of the story. When Brady first meets his little sister, Mandy, Mandy chases him all around and things seem to be going well. But then we jump right into Brady complaining about Mandy's existence. I'm not sure if that's a failing on the part of the illustrator (the dogs looked happy on the previous page!) or the author, but it was jarring to this reader. I'm also not sure about why Brady needs to both think and speak aloud (in English, no less); he's a dog, so I would've been content with seeing him just think his dialogue. Of course, then he wouldn't have been able to talk to the cat, but the only purpose for that was so he could complain about missing Mandy (yes, Brady's rather fickle) and I think that could've been done just as well with internal monologue.

Yes, I'm picky when it comes to picture books. So you might enjoy A Little Sister for Brady more than I did. I'm not sure if I would use it in a situation where a child is getting a baby sibling, although it might be useful in a situation when a household with a dog is getting a new puppy, to show children how the existing dog might be feeling. Dogs can have sibling rivalry, too!

Premise: 3/5
Meter: 3/5
Writing: 3/5
Illustrations: 3/5
Originality: 3/5

Enjoyment: 3/5

Overall: 3 out of 5