A new picture book that addresses the problem of bossy friends and the struggle to stand up to them.

Sisters Sandy and Carly always play together, but when Lily Jean moves in next door and joins them, everything changes. Now Lily Jean is calling the shots and ordering Carly to be a baby when they play house and a dog when they play king and queen. Although Sandy defends her littler sister, Carly buckles and accepts her roles. But she doesn't like it, and finally finds a way to combat Lily Jean's bullying ways, and turn the tables on her behaviour.

Frieda Wishinsky's simple text packs a poignant punch, as it authentically portrays the world of little girls and their complicated relationships. And Kady MacDonald Denton's exquisite illustrations help emphasize the underlying lessons about empathy, loyalty, and fairness. This fantastic story will serve as a tool for young children and parents to identify the difference between having fun and being bullied — or being the bully.

 

Frieda Wishinsky
est l'auteure de plus de 40 livres pour enfants. Parmi les ouvrages déjà
parus, on peut citer, entre autres,

Ounga Bounga, Tu es méchante Lily-Ange!, Le sac à main de la reine,
Canada en vedette

et les romans de la série Catastrophe! Elle vit à Toronto, en
Ontario.

 

FRIEDA WISHINSKY has written over seventy books for children, including Oonga Boonga; You're Mean, Lily Jean; the Marilyn Baillie Picture Book Award winner Please, Louise!; the middle-grade series Survival, and the non-fiction books Explorers Who Made It . . . or died trying; Everything but the Kitchen Sink and Colossal Canada. Frieda lives in Toronto, Ontario with her husband. Visit her online at www.friedawishinsky.com.

Frieda Wishinsky's profile page

Kady MacDonald Denton has illustrated more than forty picture books, including the New York Times bestseller A Visitor for Bear by Bonny Becker, and A SECOND IS A HICCUP by Hazel Hutchins. She lives in Peterborough, Ontario, Canada. Please visit her website at www.kadymacdonalddenton.ca.

Kady MacDonald Denton's profile page

• Short-listed, OLA Blue Spruce Award
• Short-listed, Shining Willow Award (Saskatchewan Young Readers' Choice)
• Short-listed, Marilyn Baillie Picture Book Award
• Short-listed, Amelia Frances Howard-Gibbon Illustrator's Award
• Commended, Toronto Public Library First & Best booklist
• Commended, Toronto Public Library First & Best Booklist

Praise for You're Mean, Lily Jean:

"The world of make-believe can be all-consuming for young people, and this book does a stellar job of exploring this theme without making the squabbles that arise feel petty, inconsequential, or worse, explicitly educational. Lily Jean is mean, but deliciously so." —Quill and Quire, starred review

You’re Mean, Lily Jean

Play is such an important part of children’s lives, especially in allowing them the opportunity to resolve problem situations in socially responsible ways.

Carly loves pretending to be different characters, such as knights and pirates, with her big sister, Sandy. When Lily Jean moves in next door, she joins the sisters in their play but right away starts assigning roles to the others. Carly is not even allowed to play unless she’s a baby, cow, or dog. She assumes the parts because she doesn’t want to be left out. However, as soon as “Carly the dog” takes one of Lily Jean’s shoes and buries it in the sandbox, Sandy decides it’s more important for her to play with her younger sister.

What’s special here is how a very common problem in play is worked out in such positive ways. Every time Carly is assigned a poor role, Sandy suggests a better alternative. In addition, Carly never actually says “You’re mean” to Lily Jean. Instead, Carly only thinks that, demonstrating to readers how we can experience certain feelings, but also possess a measure of self-restraint. And when Lily Jean asks at the end to play with the two sisters again, Carly asks her a simple question: “Can you be nice?”

Kady MacDonald Denton’s watercolour illustrations are expressive and engaging, showing the honesty in Lily Jean’s realization of the consequences of her behaviour, as well as the hope that she has in not losing her two new friends.

You’re Mean, Lily Jean

Carly always played with her older sister, Sandy. Then Lily Jean moved in next door. The sisters are happy to have a new friend to join their games. But Lily Jean starts taking over. Tired of being bossed around, Carly thinks up a creative way to teach Lily Jean a lesson.With Sandy’s assistance, can she transform a bully into a friend?