Oliver Button Is a Sissy by Tomie dePaola

48 p., Harcourt Brace, 1979.

Oliver likes to play jump rope, read, draw, play dress-up, and especially, to dance. He doesn't like to play ball, mainly because he isn't good at it. His papa and his classmates call him a sissy. His parents send him to dancing school, saying it's for exercise. He learns to tap dance, and works hard to do well. But kids bully him because of his dancing. He performs in a talent show, where he is very disappointed not to win first prize. However, his parents express pride in him, and his classmates decide that he is a star, not a sissy. Individuals' talents aren't always consistent with stereotypes, and there's an important message here about being true to yourself, regardless of other people's arbitrary ideas about what you're supposed to like or be good at.

Ages: 4-7
Cultural Context: multicultural