"I'll help you get dressed," said Stella.
"No," said Sam. "I can do it by myself."
But Sam takes a roundabout route to getting dressed and, as usual, his big sister Stella is there to help ... but this time Sam has the last laugh. Vibrant and humorous, Marie-Louise Gay's stories and pictures explore the endearing, intimate scenes of young childhood.
April 1, 2003
PreS-This book perfectly balances a preschooler's desire to get dressed all by himself with his need for help. Big sister Stella, with her flaming orange hair and skinny limbs, is the ever-patient helper. She hurries young Sam along while still giving him the space he needs to progress from underwear and shirt to socks and shoes. They play hide-and-seek games, "Sam, are you in there?" and find the lost sock and shoes, with their sidekick dog, all pudgy and round, the thieving culprit every time. Finally, when Sam proudly declares, "I'm ready! And I did it all by myself!" readers will delight both in his exaggerated claim and the fact that he has forgotten his pants. When the two siblings finally exit the house, this punch line is extended as Stella, who has been distracted by her responsibilities, has neglected to get dressed altogether. Gay excels at creating a true-to-life glimpse at one small segment of a young child's day. The whole presentation is understated from the minimal text full of subtle repetition and mundane poignancy to the diminished size of the book itself with square pages and lots of white space. Soft washed watercolors, which are expertly defined by a flowing touch of pencil, extend the playful action. They create sweet, enduring characters who are bound to strike a familiar chord with readers.-Martha Topol, Traverse Area District Library, Traverse City, MI
Copyright 2003 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
March 15, 2003
PreS-Gr. 1. Preschooler Sam is awakened by his older sister, Stella, who offers to help him dress. Sam bravely announces that he doesn't need any assistance. But though he's willing, he's not quite up to the job, being largely undermined by his own sense of fun and the antics of his little, mischievous, pot-bellied dog. Big Sister's help is, therefore, occasionally necessary. "Finally," says impatient Stella when the job is done. "Let's go," she says, heading out the door--still wearing her nightgown. Like previous books in this Canadian author-illustrator's charming series, this is a winning, humorous story of everyday life and sibling relationships. Gay's fluid watercolors sparkle with comic detail; Stella's bright orange-red hair, which matches her personality, virtually explodes off the page. One of the best pictures shows Stella pulling off Sam's stuck pajama top; kids will practically hear the sucking sound as it pops over his head. The quiet humor flows onto the endpapers, which show the dog stealing a slipper and then a sock. An amusing story crafted from one of life's most commonplace activities.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2003, American Library Association.)
January 27, 2003
The younger brother of the heroine in Stella, Star of the Sea, and other titles by Marie-Louise Gay, gets his own moment in the sun in Good Morning, Sam. Comical pictures of Sam attempting to get dressed by himself or to find his own underwear escalate until big sister Stella comes to the rescue.
July 1, 2003
In this fourth book about siblings Stella and Sam, young Sam insists on dressing himself one morning. He ends up needing help (and a reminder that he's forgotten his pants) but is still very proud of himself; he even gets the last word as Stella blithely heads out the door--in her nightgown. The humorous illustrations are perfectly geared toward the preschooler funny bone.
(Copyright 2003 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)