Dealing with a new baby in the house can be very traumatic for youngsters, but Annie Thiel's new book,
Chloe's New Baby Brother, just might help to put the event into perspective.
Parents might have problems with their firstborn once they have another baby. Young children can have a hard
time understanding how their parents can love someone else and still care about them, and sometimes they just
don't want the new arrival around. This book speaks right to a child without feeling like a lecture.
At first, Chloe is excited about the prospect of a new baby and of being a big sister, but the baby doesn't
know how to talk, and doesn't seem to like Chloe -his loud crying frightens her. She notices that the new baby
seems to take all of her parent's attention, and they don't notice her anymore. She uses her words to tell her
parents that she sometimes felt sad and left out.
The book explains that it is okay to feel sad, glad, scared or confused and encourages children to share
their feelings with someone they trust, for example a parent, or grandparent. It also reminds them about all the
fun things they can do that the new baby cannot do, and the joy they will feel when they are allowed to help with
the new baby.
The simple writing and bright, cartoonish illustrations are just right to get this message across to young
children. This is just one of the new books in a series from Playdate Kids to help kids deal with difficult
things that happen in their lives. They are wonderful bedtime or family time stories, and help to initiate
conversations about things that might happen to children or their friends.