Christmas for Greta and Gracie

It’s tough being a younger sister, especially when your older sibling—by “one year, six months, and three days”—is an irrepressible chatterbox like Greta. Quiet and careful, Gracie takes it in stride, “most of the time.” Greta pushes Gracie through a rigorous lineup of Christmas preparations, Greta-splaining everything from what Santa is really like to how to ice skate the right way, but it’s during the hush of Christmas Eve that Gracie has a magical encounter all her own. Ismail (I’m a Girl!) uses brightly colored speech bubbles and hand lettering to amplify the personalities of these rabbit sisters; Greta’s diatribes dominate the pages the same way that she dominates, well, everything. In digital compositions with the airiness of watercolor paintings, Ismail creates an exuberant portrait of Christmastime bustle that demonstrates all too clearly how holiday excitement can intensify an already-spirited relationship between sisters. Ages 3–7. Agent: Vicki Willden-Lebrecht. Bright Literary. (Sept.)