Sam's New Friend

by Thierry Robberecht, Philippe Goossens (Illustrator)

Sam is only friends with boys. Boys are strong and tough--girls aren't. But when Ellie joins Sam's class and he's forced to get to know her, he finds out that her parents may be getting a divorce. Then Sam sees just how strong and tough a girl can be, and he makes his first real friend.
Readers will relate to Sam's feelings--and his change of heart--and the bold colors, engaging animal characters, and gentle humor are perfectly suited to the preschool audience.

Genres: Picture Books, Divorce

32 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2008

Reviews

[Cindy Mitchell *Kiss the Book* · Rating 5 out of 5]

Robberecht, Thierry, Sam’s New Friend, illustrated by Philippe Goossens. Unpaged. Clarion Books, 2007.

Sam is tough and brave and he only likes playing with the boys. But his mom brings her friend’s daughter over for the evening and the night and Sam has to play with her and share his room with her. When she cries in the night, it is Sam who helps. Sam is still strong and brave, but he plays with his new friend, Ellie. Great illustrations.

Several good topics for discussion like divorce, sharing, and playing with girls! The same message could be conveyed a little more subtly.

EL (K-3) - ESSENTIAL. Susan Huff, Area Library Media Specialist.
https://kissthebook.blogspot.com/2008...

[Shonna Gnahn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sam's New Friend proves that boys and girls can be friends. Boys aren't the only ones that can be brave and strong! In this story, a boy learns that girls too can brave and strong and becomes great friends with a new girl in his class.

[Jenny · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good beginning reader. I found it quite nice in that the boy's attitude toward another character changed when he knew her more. I think it is a good idea to show kids they don't have to be stuck in their initial ideas. It also includes the idea of divorce since the new friend's parents are considering one.

[Marge]

Nice story about friendship when a little girls life is in turmoil because of divorce. Kindness matters

[Molly Darr]

This is a great book to encourage friendships. In the beginning of the story Sam is only friends with boys until he meets a new girl in the class and finds out just how strong girls can be.

[Horace Mann Family Reading Challenge · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is about a person who meets someone and thinks they are not like that person but then they get to know them and they become best friends. S.M.