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Mission: New Baby
Greetings, Special Agent! You’ve accepted the mission: you’re going to be a big sibling! This is your super-secret guide to training your family’s newest recruit. There will be lots to do, like leading physical training (teaching your sibling to walk) and sharing intel (reading together), but we know you’re up for the challenge. Best of luck, Agent! This is HQ, signing off. Over and out!
32 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2015
1 person is currently reading
18 people want to read
About the author
Susan Hood
246 books143 followersSusan Hood is the award-winning author of many books for young readers, including Ada's Violin; Lifeboat 12; The Last Straw: Kids vs. Plastics; Shaking Things Up; Titan and the Wild Boars: The True Cave Rescue of the Thai Soccer Team; and We Are One: How the World Adds Up.
Susan is the recipient of an E. B. White Read-Aloud Picture Book Honor, the Christopher Award, the Américas Award for Children’s and Young Adult Literature, the Golden Kite Award, and the Bank Street Flora Stieglitz Straus Award, given annually for “a distinguished work of nonfiction that serves as an inspiration to young people.”
COMING IN MARCH, 2022!
Susan's newest book is Alias Anna: A True Story of Outwitting the Nazis. Co-authored with Anna's (a.k.a. Zhanna's) son Greg Dawson, this biography in verse celebrates the life-saving power of the arts.
Susan is the recipient of an E. B. White Read-Aloud Picture Book Honor, the Christopher Award, the Américas Award for Children’s and Young Adult Literature, the Golden Kite Award, and the Bank Street Flora Stieglitz Straus Award, given annually for “a distinguished work of nonfiction that serves as an inspiration to young people.”
COMING IN MARCH, 2022!
Susan's newest book is Alias Anna: A True Story of Outwitting the Nazis. Co-authored with Anna's (a.k.a. Zhanna's) son Greg Dawson, this biography in verse celebrates the life-saving power of the arts.
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
November 25, 2023
The unending quest for cleverness and originality in picture books sometimes results in "cute" stories like this one. This one is much like a TV show, because the perspective is that of a spy.
Not a child about to become a big brother or big sister... but a spy.
EAGER TO START YOUR CHILD THINKING LIKE A SECRET AGENT?
I sure hope not. It's hard enough for a human child to adjust to a new baby.
Samples of the intended cleverness here include these bits of writing:
Big Brother: Can you say "cookie"?
Can you say, "Thank you, Mason"?
(That is, Big Brother is manipulating the little brother, training him up.)
Toddler Brother: Mookie, choo-choo, Maymon.
(That is, Little Brother can't talk properly. Let's have a laugh at his expense.)
RATING THIS BOOK
On behalf of intended readers, which is my policy when rating books, I'd have to give this FIVE STARS.
Personal comments re below. Here I'll just weep for certain members of humanity.
Not a child about to become a big brother or big sister... but a spy.
EAGER TO START YOUR CHILD THINKING LIKE A SECRET AGENT?
I sure hope not. It's hard enough for a human child to adjust to a new baby.
Samples of the intended cleverness here include these bits of writing:
Big Brother: Can you say "cookie"?
Can you say, "Thank you, Mason"?
(That is, Big Brother is manipulating the little brother, training him up.)
Toddler Brother: Mookie, choo-choo, Maymon.
(That is, Little Brother can't talk properly. Let's have a laugh at his expense.)
RATING THIS BOOK
On behalf of intended readers, which is my policy when rating books, I'd have to give this FIVE STARS.
Personal comments re below. Here I'll just weep for certain members of humanity.
February 11, 2017
A new recruit is coming soon, and as the older sibling, it's your job to train the newbie in everything from communications to peek-a-boo!
Super-cute way to get older siblings-to-be excited about the new baby coming soon. Best for kids 4-6 years old, give or take a year. Starts before the baby is born (#1. Attend Briefing--i.e. be told about the imminent arrival) and runs through bath & bedtime (#16. Hush Sleeper Agents--i.e. when the now-older baby finally learns to say your name).
Super-cute way to get older siblings-to-be excited about the new baby coming soon. Best for kids 4-6 years old, give or take a year. Starts before the baby is born (#1. Attend Briefing--i.e. be told about the imminent arrival) and runs through bath & bedtime (#16. Hush Sleeper Agents--i.e. when the now-older baby finally learns to say your name).
September 4, 2016
9/3/16
Mission: New Baby by Susan Hood is a picture book for children age 3 to 7. The book’s purpose was to introduce having a new baby in the house by having the older sibling train the baby on what it is like to be a kid in sixteen steps. I gave this book a 1-star rating because I did not feel that the format would be effective for a child 3 to 7 years old. The language and format seemed more appropriate for a teenager who might be able to understand the some of the vocabulary and references that were used. Vocabulary such as congratulations, headquarters, recruit, mission, briefing, associates, credentials and covert would be over the heads of a 3 to 7-year old. The illustrations that were used involved a child who looked to be about 7 years old so this would not appeal to a teenager. Some of the steps were redundant or made no sense. The concept is a novel idea and might appeal to a child who is into super agents and spies but overall I feel that the book is not appropriate for the age group it is intended for and that a child would become bored by step five. I read the story to my 8-year old son and we spent more time on explaining what the big words meant than getting the point of the story. He said he only "kinda" liked the story and felt it was too long.
Mission: New Baby by Susan Hood is a picture book for children age 3 to 7. The book’s purpose was to introduce having a new baby in the house by having the older sibling train the baby on what it is like to be a kid in sixteen steps. I gave this book a 1-star rating because I did not feel that the format would be effective for a child 3 to 7 years old. The language and format seemed more appropriate for a teenager who might be able to understand the some of the vocabulary and references that were used. Vocabulary such as congratulations, headquarters, recruit, mission, briefing, associates, credentials and covert would be over the heads of a 3 to 7-year old. The illustrations that were used involved a child who looked to be about 7 years old so this would not appeal to a teenager. Some of the steps were redundant or made no sense. The concept is a novel idea and might appeal to a child who is into super agents and spies but overall I feel that the book is not appropriate for the age group it is intended for and that a child would become bored by step five. I read the story to my 8-year old son and we spent more time on explaining what the big words meant than getting the point of the story. He said he only "kinda" liked the story and felt it was too long.
July 24, 2015
This picture book introduces the concept of having a new baby in the house as a spy’s mission that must be completed by following a series of steps, each of which represents an activity or milestone that an older sibling can help a new baby with learning. The cartoon pencil and watercolor illustrations are enjoyable and represent the brief, numbered steps of the new baby’s “training”. Many of the illustrations include dialog between the characters, which helps flesh out the steps. Children ages 3-7 who have had or are expecting a new sibling should find this book especially entertaining, but any child can enjoy this book. It would probably work best one-on-one, for careful consideration of the illustrations since they carry the weight of the story, rather than in a group setting.
August 23, 2015
Introduces the idea of parents bringing in a new baby as a mission, with the older sibling needing to accomplish a list of tasks in order to complete this mission successfully. This is an engaging concept and works well at times, but sometimes falls short of its goal. Part of the problem is that the author initially introduces several siblings in different families with their new baby siblings. However, these characters fall in and out of the narrative, mostly out of, which makes it weak and confusing at times when it comes to following along. This wouldn't work well in a group setting, but better as a one-on-one discussion. Recommended.
December 29, 2015
I liked the concept a lot--as a new older brother or sister, you have a mission. A mission to help teach the new baby everything you know. I also like that there were different families announcing to their kids that a new baby would be joining their family--that way this book could be recommended for boys or girls. But not all kids are shown on all pages and a lot of the time it's just the "main" kid, who is the only one ever given a name. It's confusing. I also think, because of the spy feel to the book, it'll work better with older kids.
March 24, 2015
Probably a better gift book than a classroom book, but I did like the structure of the book which would position it well as a mentor text. It is really a list of 16 things the older brother must do for the new baby. Pages are also filled with speech bubbles. Fun book that could show kids how to create other mission books.
October 10, 2015
The list of important information needed by an older sibling is numbered with important-sounding titles, such as "Familiarize subject with headquarters and introduce associates" and "Share intelligence" are amusing.
Large pages give lots of room for detailed illustrations and show several different families.
Large pages give lots of room for detailed illustrations and show several different families.
February 23, 2015
A wonderful choice for adding a playful look at new siblings in a Parenting Collection, or just the general picture book collection. Full of light humor and gentle instructions, big brothers and sisters will flock to this one.
January 14, 2016
What can you do to help a big brother or big sister get ready for a new baby? Well, the robot has important instructions to help out, everything from the briefing to going undercover. Mission Accomplished! http://julianaleewriter.com/books-ali...
May 12, 2016
The book begins Congratulations! Headquarters is about to get a brand new recruit. Since you’re the b ig brother or sister, your mission is to train the new kid on the team. It’s a Big job. Are you ready? Using military terminology it teaches a sibling how to be the best big brother ever.
October 14, 2014
A cute book for new brothers and sisters.
April 4, 2017
Very cute. Great illustrations. Loved the way that the idea of taking care of a new sibling was presented as it being a "mission" and many of the illustrations continued with that theme.
March 10, 2015
perfect for big siblings expecting a new baby
April 9, 2015
good for a sibling theme
April 14, 2015
I liked this positive spin on adding a new baby to the family. No sibling rivalry here.
April 23, 2015
Adorable illustrations...realistic. Not many words, love that for younger children..time for thought and taking in the pictures.
June 27, 2015
This is the perfect book for a child who is awaiting a new baby brother or sister!
October 5, 2019
Headquarters is about to get a new recruit and the big brother or big sister is responsible for training that recruit. There’s so much to do, so follow these 16 easy steps to success.
April 7, 2015
Cute idea, but the concept becomes labored over the length of the book.
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May 9, 2019This is a fun step-to-step guide to how to become a good brother or sister. This is a fun interactive book that I wish I had when my little brother was just a baby.
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews