Baby Ruby Bawled

by Malaika Rose Stanley, Ken Wilson-Max (Illustrator)

The illustrator of Flush the Potty and Little Red Plane brings his signature style to a charming story of a new baby in the family and an older sibling's important role Baby Ruby won't stop crying. Dad gives her a bath, Mom gives her a feed, Nanna takes her for a drive, and Grandad walks her around the garden, but Ruby won't stop crying. At last her brother Theo has a try and sings her a special song he makes up. Theo is so tired out by all of this that he falls asleep, and so does Ruby. A warm family story about a baby that won't stop crying and an older brother who saves the day.

Genres: Picture Books, Family

32 pages, Paperback

First published May 10, 2010

Reviews

[Zoe Hickey · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lovely story about a new baby who simply will not stop crying! Each member of the family tries to get baby Ruby to stop crying in a range of ways. Theo thinks of a way to get her to stop crying after everyone else has tried.
This story shows the bond which siblings can have and how we can all keep trying different things to solve problems. A story where there is hope and perseverance.

[Mathew · Rating 4 out of 5]

Poor Theo. It’s always a challenge when a sibling comes along and demands all the attention that you were used to. Worse, they cry all the time and nothing will calm them down. In Baby Ruby Bawled, even Theo’s extended family – Nana, Grandpa or Uncle Clyde – cannot solve the problem. Instead, Theo recognises that he is needed and that if his baby sister is to stop crying perhaps it’s a big brother that she wants rather than an adult.

It’s lovely to find another story in which a mixed-race family is seen as yet is portrayed as wholly normative. This is a warm, amusing story with wonderfully rich paintings by Wilson-Max accompanying the easy and repetitive narrative of Rose Stanley.

[Melissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story is pretty straightforward and covers familiar ground, but I love the matter-of-fact touches throughout: the multiracial family, the use of texting, and the caregiving by both genders and all generations.