Butterflies on the First Day of School

Silvestro (The Christmas Tree Who Loved Trains) puts a fanciful spin on a familiar metaphor in this tale about a girl who's impatient to start school. Rosie diligently practices classroom skills, including hand raising, but her confidence vanishes on her first day, and she insists she doesn't feel well. She's puzzled when her mother tells her she has butterflies in her stomach, but while chatting to a friendly girl on the school bus, Rosie finally understands when butterflies (seemingly visible only to her) flutter from her mouth. Throughout the morning, "butterflies rumbled in Rosie's belly" and occasionally slip out, but by recess she feels fine and reaches out to a forlorn classmate standing alone--whose own butterflies escape. Animator Chen uses bold crayon hues to invigorate her renderings of Rosie's changeable emotions and to showcase a striking kaleidoscope of butterflies. A cheering first-day story. Ages 3-up. (May)

PreS-Gr 2—What happens to all those butterflies in your stomach? Rosie is excited and ready for her first day of school. She picked out her backpack over a month ago, decorated it herself, and even practiced raising her hand at home. However, the night before the first day, she cannot sleep. The next morning her belly hurts and she cannot even eat her breakfast. Her mother reassures her, "You just have butterflies in your belly" and hugs her tight. Once on the bus, she quickly makes a new friend, and a butterfly flies out while she's talking. Her new friend doesn't seem to notice, and as they continue to talk, more butterflies flutter out. Throughout the day, the butterflies, unnoticed by everyone else, fly out of her mouth. Rosie's belly begins to feel much better. At recess, she even helps a fellow student get a butterfly out of her belly by saying hello. Rosie's mom has a butterfly of her own fly out once she realizes that Rosie had a great first day. The mixed-media illustrations match the text well, and the bright colors fit the story's theme well. VERDICT A first purchase for back-to-school shelves that will reassure both students and caregivers.—Brooke Newberry, Winding Rivers Library System, West Salem, WI