Time-Out for Sophie

Little mouse Sophie is having a busy evening. When Mama tells her, "No throwing supper," does Sophie behave? Of course not. She dumps a second bowl of mac and cheese (homemade!), so her mother puts her in a time-out. Next Sophie "helps" Daddy by pushing his neatly folded laundry onto the floor. Daddy gives her another chance, but like any self-respecting toddler, she can't resist a pile of clothes. "Time-out for Sophie!" Like-minded ers will find an ally in this spirited mouse-child, who revels in her gleeful transgressions. Most of the action takes place within cozy, colorful borders, but after the grownups reprimand Sophie, the comforting frame is stripped away and Sophie appears small and powerless. Young listeners, who understand small and powerless all too well, can empathize with Sophie's distress from a safe distance. The narrative pattern is disrupted when Sophie grabs Granny's glasses for the third time in a row and Granny wisely gives herself a time-out. This reversal proves unsettling enough to set Sophie straight…for the time being. As always, Wells portrays her character's developmentally appropriate behavior with genuine respect and affection; the way in which the adults calmly express their frustration offers a gentle (unobtrusive) message to those dealing with their own Sophies. kitty flynn