As the older of two sisters, I not only loved this, but totally identified with the main character--a little girl whose mom makes her take her li'l sis to a friend's birthday party. Ugh, Mom! Why?!

The mom in this story actually doesn't know about the custom of celebrating birthdays in the United States, which should be an intriguing point for most young American readers. Some people don't celebrate birthdays? Really?

The central conflict in this occurs when the middle sister eats most of the oldest sister's birthday party lollipop. The illustrations hilariously show the angry chase that ensues, culminating in the oldest sister throwing the lollipop under the couch in frustration. Then the middle sister fishes it out and eats the rest. Gross! Funny!

In a move not often seen in picture books, the story elapses over an entire year (maybe two--we see the youngest sister grow up noticeably) which allows us to see the development of the characters. When the middle sister is told she has to take the youngest to a birthday party, you'll be surprised what happens.

A fantastic book about fairness, maturity, and sibling relations. ( )

I have to admit that I nearly tossed this book aside in fury about 3/4 of the way through. Glad I didn't, because all of my issues were resolved in a very good way. ( )

I would recommend this book to any age of elementary students. This book is about siblings and fairness when it comes to birthday parties. This would be good in the classroom because it is something that students with siblings can relate to and shows that in life not everything will be fair and equal.

This is a children's picture book that tells the story of a young girl who is invited to a birthday party but is not allowed to bring her little sister along. As a Teacher, you can use this by reading the book aloud to your students and use it as a starting point for discussion about sibling relationships, cultural differences, and social norms, and make it so students can share their own experiences and thoughts about these topics. Good lessons to learn at ages kinder to second. ( )

A young girl named Rubina receives an invitation to a classmate's birthday party, but when she asks her mom for permission to go, her little sister Sana throws a tantrum until Rubina agrees to take her along to the party, even though she knows the other children will think its strange. They go to the party, and in the gift bags they take home, both girls are given a big, red lollipop. Sana eats hers on the way home from the party, but Rubina wants to save hers, so she puts in the fridge. The next day, when Rubina goes to retrieve it, she finds that Sana has already eaten almost all of it. None of the children at school invite Rubina to any more parties because they know she'll have to bring Sana. One day, Sana brings home an invitation to a party, and their youngest sister, Maryam, throws a fit that she wants to go too. Rubina intervenes on behalf of Sana, sparing Sana the social ostracism she herself had caused her big sister. As a gesture of reconciliation, Sana gives Rubina the big green lollipop she receives at the party. This story will resonate with anyone who has a sibling, younger or older, and has a good message that doing good deeds without expecting reward brings rewards. There is also some relatively understated representation, as the family shown is of the Muslim faith, as the mother wears the hijab and they all have traditionally Middle Eastern names, but nothing more is really made of it from a cultural perspective. ( )