Za-Za's Baby Brother

To add my two cents to the discussion here, it is important to allow the big brothers and sisters to express how they feel- and they feel left out when a new baby comes along! The book is great, as it articulates for these little Za-zas their fears and allows them to prepare for the big day. Unlike other books on the topic, the older siblings are not expected to be "happy" and "good" all the time, which is much more realistic. In our family, it took Za Za a long time to get used to his little brother :) I got it from my sister in law, and now I am buying one for a friend who is expecting.

This book was given to my 22 month old daughter as a gift when her baby brother was born. It is now 9 months later, the binding is bent and we will probably have to buy a new copy soon because she reads this book EVERY day. This is the story she wants for bed every night. She knows it word for word and "reads" it to her baby brother and to mommy and daddy. I think there are two great lessons in this book: 1. that babies take alot of work and Zaza needs to be patient, and 2. Mom and dad, don't forget about Zaza now that there is a new baby. Zaza needs attention too. Taken into perspective, this is a book designed for a preschooler on a preschoolers comprehension level, not for an adult to analyze. If we take the time to analyze everything, then Little Miss Muffet is teaching our kids to be afraid of spiders, Hansel and Gretel are teaching them to break into strangers houses and worst of all, Snow White is teaching our children that step mothers are evil witches and to be very, very afraid to eat apples.

I am only writing a review because I was surprised by the negative reviews for a book that my children love. I did not buy this book to prepare for a new sibling -- I bought it because we like the brightly illustrated books of Lucy Cousins. Maybe if we had bought it to prepare for a new sibling I would have different feelings. However, I have to say that my daughter, age 2, pulls this book out and brings it to me to read all the time, and my son, age 4, will still come running to listen to it when he hears us reading it, even though he has heard it hundreds of times since he was a baby. It's a fun book (especially if you narrate it with a silly voice for Za-Za and include crying baby sound effects). As for the new sibling issue, a newborn baby does get a lot of attention, and the older sibling probably will have a big adjustement, just like Za-Za. Maybe some reviewers think it's negative because the story is told from Za-Za's perspective and she is feeling the loss of some of her parent's attention. But you know what -- that is what really happens in real life! Children do have to learn to share some of the attention that has previously been only on them, and Za-Za learns this and also learns to appreciate her baby brother. Is that so bad? The negative reviews haven't changed my opinion, and they sure won't change my children's. At least check it out from the library before you dismiss this book entirely.

As always with Lucy Cousins, the illustrations are adorable. As much as we'd like it not to be so, when a new baby enters the house, it DOES get most of the attention. This book addresses that issue, but also gently points out that the older sibling can share time with the baby -- "helping" with its care, and playing with it. And it promises that when the baby does finally go to sleep, mommy or daddy will have one-on-one time with that older sibling. We love this book (we have it in Norwegian!). And even though our new "baby brother" is now heading toward two years old, big sister still loves this book. Note to adoptive parents: as you can probably tell from the cover illustration, this book depicts a very pregnant mommy zebra that goes to the hospital to have the baby, so this one isn't for you; I would recommend intead "I'm a Big Sister" or "I'm a Big Brother" by Joanna Cole.

Our son was three when our daughter was born. This book really helped him to express his feelings about sharing Mommy and Daddy with the new baby. I have given this book as a "Second Baby" gift many times. People are very familiar with Lucy Cousins' Maisy books, but they rarely have this book. You won't find it on the shelf at most bookstores, either.