Ruby, Mono Ve, Mono Hace/Ruby the copycat

"At first, when new-girl Ruby imitates Angela, Angela takes it in good part: they must be kindred spirits. But as she realizes that Ruby's claims (only Angela was really a bridesmaid) aren't true, Angela is ever-more annoyed with her mimicry. A sensitive teacher helps Ruby see that doing her own thing is a better way to make friends. Rathmann plots the evolution of a friendship going sour, primary-grade style, with sensitivity and just enough exaggeration to provide humor.

It's too bad that the teacher is needed to help Ruby understand the effect of her behavior, but her gradual realization is believably drawn, and children have been known to profit from good advice. Like the text, the simple illustrations nicely capture the nuances of the characters' feelings. A solid debut." Picture book. 4-8) -- Copyright c1991, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the School & Library Binding edition.

The illustrations are appropriately stylized to clearly deliver character emotions, and there are subtle details in the pictures that breathe more life into the characters.

Al principio, cuando la chica nueva, Ruby, imita a Angela, esta se siente halagada. Pero despues, cuando Ruby comienza a contar como suyas algunas de las experiencias que Angela ha vivido, esta ultima se molesta. La maestra del salon le ensena a Ruby una gran leccion: sus propias experiencias son una mejor manera para hacer amigos. Rathman escribe con una gran sensibilidad sobre la evolucion de una amistad entre ninas de primer grado, y exagera solo lo necesario para darle un toque de humor a la historia.