A Baby for Grace

This is the story of Grace, whose baby sibling's arrival seems to bring a lot of prohibitions - 'No Grace, let me...'- while the new baby's activities provoke an 'Ah, yes!' response. Eventually Grace finds a way to get a 'yes' too. The text, in large clear print (literacy hour sharing in mind?) uses very simple language structures reminiscent of reading scheme books irritatingly poorly punctuated in places. Birmingham's illustrations are larger than the page, photographically-dervied with a pastel-like texture that looks computer-created. Rich colours and hazy outlines give a certain, slightly wistful, attractiveness, and the illustrations reflect the text very literally. I wonder whether this conscious approach to children facing difficult situations is appropriate to vulnerable young children - a subtler approach might be more effective in the end. This story seems more suited to school-use, perhaps for circle-time discussions.