Title: Masha and Her Sisters

Author/Illustrator: Suzy Ultman

Ages: 0-4

Review:

Sometimes it’s hard to fit in with your siblings. If you have a brother or sister, you probably know what I mean. Maybe you have different interests, or maybe you’re just too far apart in age. But in spite of these disparities, this person is bound to you for life, and everyone has something unique to bring to the table! Today I thought I’d talk about one of my favorite sibling books, Masha and Her Sisters by Suzy Ultman. It’s not the most obvious book for discussing siblings, but design-wise it is pretty darn perfect, and I think it conveys a lot about sibling relationships.

Masha and Her Sisters is a board book about five sisters: Masha, Larisa, Olya, Galya, and Natasha. The book is die cut to be shaped like a Russian nesting doll and bound, not on the left side, but at the bottom. However, Ultman seamlessly conveys to readers that just because five people come from the same family doesn’t mean they all have the same interests. Each sister is unique in size, color, and hobby, and yet they complete each other (familiarly and physically) in absolute synchronicity. Without even one of them, they wouldn’t be the balanced little family we see in this book. With five pages in total, each sister is featured as one page of the book, and, like Russian nesting dolls, each sister gets smaller and smaller the more you dig into the book. And with the bottom bind, readers get to flip through the adorable family from top to bottom, making not only the format of the book unique, but the experience of reading it unique, too!

The book is a lovely reminder that while people exist separately as individuals, together they are stronger and the bonds of family help people tell their stories.

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Add to My Library: Masha and Her Sisters