MY SISTER IS SLEEPING

A young girl anticipates all the fun she will have when baby sister wakes up from her nap.

There will be giggles and cuddles, a chance to feed the baby, and a walk with her in the stroller. This baby is endlessly fascinating, with feathery eyelashes, fists that open like fans, and strawberry lips. The protagonist is patient and reminds herself again and again, “Soon she will wake up.” As narrator she describes all these attributes and plans in simple, brief sentences as if she is speaking directly to her readers. Originally written in Hebrew and translated into English, the tale is made all the richer by the smooth, contextually clear incorporation of Hebrew words into the narration. “She smells clean like milk, halav.” Kichka’s softly hued illustrations add a great deal of clever and amusing details, depicting big sister in different rooms of a comfortable home, drawing bright pictures with colored pencils and paint to while away the time. She draws at and under the kitchen table, on the floor close by baby’s crib with stuffed animals seemingly watching her progress, on a porch, and in the backyard. But this big girl can wait no longer and falls asleep, carried off by Ima for her own nap. All members of the family present white.

A lovely, sweet treat for big siblings everywhere.