The Pain and the Great One Book

Somehow this is one of the Judy Blume books that escaped me growing up. I suppose because once she became my favorite author, I was more interested in the "older girl" books than I would have been in some kiddie book.

This book was actually very cute. It is a story of sibling rivalry told from both perspectives. Big sister (The Great One) thinks little brother (The Pain) gets away with everything and is coddled by mom and dad. Lil brother thinks big sis is the favorite cause she's smart and can do everything right.

I liked that there was no obvious lesson in this book because when you're little you're going to hate your brother or sister no matter how much mom or dad tries to make you love them and show you you need your brother or sister. Of course the adult can see the subtle lesson in the book, but this book was not written for me, the adult. There is no resolution at the end of this story and that's perfectly fine.

The illustrations are cute, but as a kid, I always thought of them as the "cheap" drawings. Kids like to look at either funny or really nice drawings. I don't believe kids will be wowed by the art here.