OH, BROTHER!

When his mother remarries, a young boy resents his new stepbrother until he discovers they have a lot in common.

Xavier feels displaced when he has to share his room and his mother with his new stepbrother Chris. Xavier avoids Chris who seems too good to be true. Every night Chris clears the table, loads the dishwasher, finishes his homework and goes to bed early. Worried that “perfect as a clock” Chris is deliberately trying to make him look bad, Xavier warns Chris he’s “sick of Mr. Perfect.” But when a tearful Chris explains he has to be perfect so his dad won’t leave him like his mama did, Xavier realizes Chris is just as scared as he is. Gradually Xavier learns he and Chris have much to share including a new baby sister. Twenty poems laced with emotion chronicle Xavier’s journey from anger to acceptance, while Benny’s strong gouache illustrations capture his emotional struggle to embrace his new hermano and their new family.

Ideal for kids coping with new step-siblings.