View source for The New Small Person by Lauren Child

{{infobox
|title=The New Small Person
|sort=New Small Person, The
|author=Lauren Child
|reviewer=Rachael Spencer
|genre=For Sharing
|rating=4.5
|buy=Yes
|borrow=Yes
|isbn=9780723293613
|pages=32
|publisher=Puffin
|date=September 2014
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0723293619</amazonuk>
|amazonus=<amazonus>0723293619</amazonus>
|website=
|video=
|summary=Elmore Green is an only child, until the day his little brother Albert arrives. Elmore isn't impressed, but why won't this new small person go away? A lovely read which might just help children come around to the idea of having a new small person around themselves.
}}
Elmore Green is an only child, and very happy about it he is too, thank you very much. And then a small person arrives in his house and everything is just wrong. What is he supposed to do?! The small person gets bigger, and Elmore just isn’t sure how he is supposed to deal with it. 

Lauren Child always knows how to tap into the thoughts of small people, and this book is no exception. It is charming and witty, as funny for grown ups as for children, maybe even funnier in fact. I enjoy very much the way in which Elmore refers to his brother as 'it' until he finally accepts him, when he starts to use his name.

The arrival of a new brother or sister is always going to be a tricky subject to tackle with a child, and books are often good ways to go about it. If a child can associate events with something that has happened in a story, then it can relax them some more about the situation, and I’d say this book is an excellent example of that. Though Elmore doesn’t like a lot of the things Albert does for a lot of the book, in the end they are the best of friends and I am pretty sure this will work to the advantage of many an expectant parent. 

Drawn in Child’s usual style, it has a playful feel with a very kid friendly outlook on the world, making it feel more like you as an adult are stepping into their world, rather than them feeling like they’re struggling to understand and be part of an adult world. Maybe it’s this style which makes her effortlessly popular with children. 

This is a really entertaining read which will also come in useful for many a family, borrowed or bought I’d suggest you give it a try if you’re nervous about giving your little one a sibling, or even if you’re not. 

If you're looking for some more of the same author, how about trying [[I Am Not Sleepy And I Will Not Go To Bed by Lauren Child\I Am Not Sleepy And I Will Not Go To Bed]] for some fun with Charlie and Lola?

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