Grandma, the baby and me by Emma Allen

Ill. by Hannah Sommerville. Scholastic, 2014. ISBN 9781862918733
(Age: 4+) Siblings, Babies, Grandparents. The confusion of an older sibling at the introduction of a new baby into a household is given a fresh approach in this story. Henry's grandmother has warned there will be trouble and it follows like night follows day. The baby screams and takes up his parents' time. When Mum has put out the washing, it rains so that Henry's favourite dinosaur pyjamas are too wet to wear, so he must wear his sister's frilly pink ones. This embarrassment is compounded when she shows their friends what Henry had worn. When Henry splashes in the bath he is told he is splashing the baby, when he accidentally pushes Fergus, he goes to his room but has a pain in this tummy. All is relieved when Grandam arrives the next day to hug him.
This is a sympathetic story of the changes afoot in a family when a baby arrives. Each of the subdued illustrations shows the family in some sort of disarray as the baby's presence upsets the normal routine. The wash of pale watercolour within the soft pencil outlines gives a gentleness to the illustrations that engages the reader in seeing the intrusion of the baby from Henry's point of view and we are pleased with him when Grandma arrives to save Henry's day.
Fran Knight