When My Brother Gets Home

December 2, 2019
As a ponytailed child waits on the sidewalk in front of her home with her dog and cat, she imagines all the wonderful things she’ll do with her brother when he gets home from school. On the agenda: a backyard tea party, a “comic book convention” in their tree house (the siblings are shown as silhouettes through gold-hued leaves), the construction of a massive cardboard box castle, and much more. Lichtenheld (Ten Rules of the Birthday Wish) uses a recurring two-spread structure to build momentum: the girl addresses the reader from her sidewalk perch (“When my brother gets home...”), while the opposite page shows a crayoned picture of his bus journey. The second spread offers an exuberant imagining of the hoped-for activity, cartooned in pencil, watercolor, and colored pencil. Readers with cranky older siblings may keep waiting for the hammer to drop, but it never does: “MY BROTHER’S HOME!” shouts the girl on his arrival, and as the pair walks away from the reader, the boy asks, “So what do you want to do?” It’s a touching story of anticipation rewarded and unalloyed affection reciprocated. Ages 4–7. Agent: Amy Rennert, the Amy Rennert Agency.

January 15, 2020
What's better than a big brother? A big brother who asks, "So what do you want to do?"! A ponytailed little sister impatiently searches for any sign of the school bus. Propped against a tree, she anticipates the death-defying exploits she and her brother will embark upon--after feeding their loyal subjects. Will they ford the mighty Amazon, or will they find themselves locked in a fierce struggle against a snarling alligator? As the feisty sprite conjures up a round-the-world trip on their very own jumbo jet, the school bus is turning the corner..."MY BROTHER'S HOME!" Lichtenheld's sibling lovefest launches right from the clever endpapers. The bus route is plotted in black dashes from the school to the tree--broken up halfway home by the story itself. As the refrain, "When my brother gets home," is repeated, a childlike crayon drawing clues readers in to the bus's progress. Each repetition is followed up by thought bubbles depicting their very next adventure--maybe it will be a daredevil plunge into a raging waterfall! From the striped, marmalade cat to the scruffy, up-for-anything dog, everyone is supercharged and ready to go--not a screen to be had on any of the pages. Both kids have brown skin and black hair, and their imaginations make their ordinary suburb quite extraordinary. The characters' energy explodes from this endearing tribute to sibling interactions and affection. (Picture book. 4-7)

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February 1, 2020

PreS-Gr 1-A little girl imagines all kinds of fun activities that she and her brother can do when he gets home from school. She pictures them having their own comic book convention, climbing Mount Kilimanjaro, and practicing Olympic dives. They'll also build a castle and have an adventure as they explore a rainforest. The scenarios she pictures go on and on. They may have elaborate names, but what she pictures are simple and sweet. The castle they will build is actually made out of cardboard boxes and diving practice is swinging from a rope and jumping into a pond. Some children with older siblings will relate to the relationship she has with her brother. The pictures are simple but charming; the illustrations show a little sister trying hard to wait patiently and on the opposite page we see a child's drawing of a school bus in its travels, bringing her brother home. Everything seems better when your favorite person gets home. VERDICT A sweet-natured tale for young children that celebrates the special bond between siblings.-Barbara Spiri, Southborough Library, MA

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