Sadie and Ratz

Gr 2–4—Playful, spritely Hannah has two hands named Sadie and Ratz, personified to keep her company and do all manner of mischief in retaliation to her annoying sibling, four-year-old Baby Boy. Yet even before the conflict, strong character development, authentic voices, and fluidity of language set this beginning chapter book apart, as do the remarkable charcoal illustrations, full of tenderness and verve. Play is paramount, as the wildly imaginative Hannah copes with the blossoming presence of Baby Boy and unfailingly implicates Sadie and Ratz. Her mother suggests yoga for relaxation and the hands become snowflakes, but as soon as Baby Boy turns the bend, they revert to Hammerheads and he responds with his "banshee bull" scream. Yet when Baby Boy starts to blame Sadie and Ratz for his own bits of mischief, Hannah must take notice. She muses that he used to be, "a spaceman who never heard or spoke," but now has become tricky. She has to come up with a solution. Witnessing her thought process is unforgettable in its sincerity: "A horrible thought came into my head./Maybe Sadie and Ratz would have to change." Hartnett adeptly conveys the pain and loneliness of an older sibling facing a monumental moment of change and captures what growing up really means to a child. This joyful choice for reading aloud serves as a discussion starter on coping, acceptance, and maturity, and as an instruction manual on personal narratives. There are myriad ways to appreciate this pitch-perfect story.—Sara Lissa Paulson, American Sign Language and English Lower School PS 347, New York City