Richie’s Picks: SHARK AT SISTER TEA
Richie Partington
Richie’s Picks: SHARK AT SISTER TEA by Barbara Joose and Sergio Ruzzier, ill., Penguin Random House/Anne Schwartz Books, May 2025, 40p., ISBN: 978-0-593-64694-6
“All kinds of weather
We stick together
The same in the rain or sun
Two different faces
But in tight places
We think and we act as one”
– Irving Berlin “Sisters” (1954)
“‘My pets,’ he oozed, ‘your garden looks quite fine!
And–oh my!--
the decorations are divine.’
He guided Flora to her chair.
How odd, she thought.
His skin feels rough and cold.
Once settled in,
the guest spun tales of catching fish,
‘so crunchy and delicious.’
And when he tied his napkin round his neck,
Sadie thought–but wasn’t sure–
she spied a pointy fin.
The sisters nibbled cake,
but all the while, they watched–
along with Blue, who stared
with button eyes–
as the guest gulped down
one slice, then three…
then opened wide
to eat the rest.
The sisters saw it, both at once.
Inside his jaw!
A double row of teeth!
Yes! Their guest…he was…”
Sergio Ruzzier’s animal characters and the soft shades of his ink-and-watercolor illustrations are widely recognizable to those who spend time with children’s picture books. Barbara Joosse is the author of the classic, best-seller picture book, MAMA DO YOU LOVE ME? Together, they have crafted one goofy crack-up of a read for rugrats.
After the (dog-like) Papa and (cat-like) Mama sail away to market, the two sisters (Little Flora and Sadie) plan an afternoon tea party:
“‘Sister tea! Let’s build a tent with silky scarves and serve up cake with roses.’”
With preparations complete, the sisters (and Blue, Flora’s beloved teddy bear) sit down and begin serving tea and cake. Just then, an uninvited guest appears at the garden gate to crash their party. Anyone (except, of course, the sisters) can immediately see that this so-called fisherman is really a shark cloaked in a yellow rain slicker and hat. Suspicious, but hospitable, the sisters nevertheless proceed with the festivities until their guest chomps down the entire cake and has his jaws set next on Sadie.
This is when the sisters realize the danger and join forces, in order to send their huge, unwelcome guest back to sea.
The goofiness, the gross-motor action, and that giant jaw–equipped with the two sets of choppers–make this one that will go over big-time as a lively circle time read-aloud. The aspect that young audiences will carry away is that two sisters–sticking together–can cleverly stand up to a significant threat. And, like Flora and Sadie, they might well end up having a special secret to share (and to hide away from their own mamas and papas). There’ll be plenty of sisters who will subsequently have a more positive attitude about that pesky older or younger sibling.
Richie Partington, MLIS
Richie's Picks http://richiespicks.pbworks.com
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