new shoes for silvia

by Johanna Hurwitz, Jerry Pinkney (Illustrator)

Silvia can't wait to try on her present from Tia new shoes as red as the inside of a watermelon. The shoes are too big for Silvia to wear -- but that doesn't stop her from dinfing lots of ways to enjoy them while she waits for her feet to grow! "The excitement of the new shoes and the formidable task of waiting to grow into them are both conveyed beautifully through the story and the art....Watercolors fill each page with the details of life in Silvia's home and small village....Hurwitz perfectly captures the pleasure of a special gifted the difficulty of waiting."--Horn Book Speaks universally to the imagination and emotions."--School Library Journal

Genres: Picture Books, Realistic Fiction, Fiction, Childrens

32 pages, Paperback

First published September 23, 1993

About the author

Johanna Hurwitz is an American author of more than sixty children's books. She has sold millions of books in many different languages.

Reviews

[Prabhat sharma · Rating 4 out of 5]

New Shoes for Sylvia by Johanna Hurwitz- Children’s Illustrated Colour Picture Book- The book narrates a South American story where Tia Rosita has sent a packet of gifts for each member of Silvia’s family. For Sylvia, she has sent a pair of red shoes like the insides of a watermelon. Sylvia tries to wear the shoes but their size is bigger and do not fit in her feet. Sylvia uses her shoes as bed for dolls. Sylvia has to wait until size of feet grows. This period is used by Sylvia for her entertainment. She ties the shoes with a thick thread and runs them like a train. She uses the shoes to place her round stones in them. She had collected these round stones when she visited the sea coast with her grandparents. Sylvia engages herself in helping her parents in everyday activities. Some month’s pass. Her mother writes a letter of thanks to Tia Rosita. During this time, Sylvia’s feet size has grown and the red shoes fit her feet. She wears her shoes and walks with her mother to the post office to post the letter. Coloured illustrations help the reader in relating to the story. I have read the Hindi language translation of this book.

[Library Lady Terri · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the ingenuity of the main character to find other things to do with her shoes as she waited to grow in to them. I liked that another package wasn't waiting at the post office to reinforce the specialness of the shoes and the virtue of patience.

I'm disappointed that this book was not written or illustrated by someone from Latin America.

[Nichole · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautifully illustrated. A story of a young girl who gets brand new shoes that are too big. She loves them and finds ways to use them, even though she can't wear them. **Bonus** depictions of pregnancy and young infant

[Gina · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's nice to see that while waiting to get bigger can be hard for children, there are opportunities for fun in that as well.

[Haydee Romero]

Silvia is a little girl who is anxious to wear her new red shoes that Tia Rosita sent her that are a bit too big. The story’s main idea is about patience. Silvia finds creative ways to use her shoes, waiting week after week to see if she had grown into them. I would use the text to teach the characteristic of being patient, or impatient in Silvia’s case. Jerry Pinkley does an amazing job depicting a small, rural Latin American town. As a teacher, I would use the illustrations to compare the differences between the United States and the “far away America.” We can also discuss how “packages do not come every day,” in the small town Silvia lives in. The story provides the opportunities to explore how children in other countries live.

[Liza · Rating 3 out of 5]

Silvia is a little girl that receives a present from her Tia Rosita who lives in the United States. Silvia loves her new red shoes, but they are too big for her. She finds creative ways to use her shoes while waiting for her feet to grow into them. The story can be used in the classroom to teach patience or in Silvia's case, impatience. The illustrations capture the the small rural town where Silvia lives. Students can see through the illustrations that Silvia is poor. This a great story to discuss how children in small towns in other countries live. Mail is not delivered everyday in small rural communities and children need to be made aware that receiving a package where she lives is a big deal for a little girl.

[Linda Lipko]

This isn't one of my favorite illustrated books, but it is cute and the moral of the story is the need for creative patience. Certainly, I can relate to that.

Silvia is a young girl who receives a delightful present of a new pair of bright red shoes. Alas, she is disappointed when trying them on and discovers they are too large. Using the shoes as beds for her dolls, and then a few weeks later attaching string to the shoes in order to pull the dolls through the fields with oxen, she fount another creative way to enjoy her shoes. Placing sea shells in the shoes, she found she could store her prized possessions and thus look at both the shells and the shoes.

Eventually, Sylvia grows and can wear the shoes.

[Shelli · Rating 3 out of 5]

New Shoes for Silbia is a sweet tale of a young girl who receives a special gift in the mail from her Aunt Tia Rosita, a brand new pair of shiny red shoes. Sadly when Silbia tries on her new beautiful shoes she discovers they are much to big for her. She so desperately wants to wear them that she finds creative uses for them as she waits for her feet to grow. This is a good story to read with children and ask them to infer information from the text or the illustrations. Why do you think Silvia is so excited about her new shoes? Is Silvia’s family wealthy or poor? What makes you think that? Does Silvia live in a city or in the country?

[Judy · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's refreshing to read about a child who isn't over-burdened with toys and is excited to have a new pair of shoes. When the shoes prove to be too big for Silvia, she uses her imagination and the shoes become toys. After reading the story aloud several times, it's fun to just look at the pictures and tell a story about what it would be like to live in Sylvia's family/house/village.

[Katie Lewellen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a perfect book to help teach everyone is different. This book also depicts the importance of having patience when waiting for something exciting. Great book for kindergarten thru second grade.

[Christine Turner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Discussion topic: Economic disparity of children in other countries.
Note: Latin America "Another America."

[Hira · Rating 5 out of 5]

word conciousness

[Alexis Dowdell]

This story is about a hispanic family who is not very fortunate. When Silvia gets new shoes she is excited to wear them but discovers her feet are too small at first.