Peter’s Chair by Ezra Jack Keats, 1967.

There is a new baby in Peter’s family, his little sister, Susie, and things are changing for Peter.  He is no longer the baby of the family.  He must play quietly to avoid disturbing the baby, and his father is painting all of his old, blue baby furniture pink for little Susie.

Peter feels badly, seeing the baby getting all of his old things.  Spotting his old baby chair, which hasn’t been painted yet, Peter runs off with it, taking along some of his other old things.

However, what Peter eventually realizes is that he has grown too big to fit into his old chair.  Nobody stays a baby forever, and Peter’s old baby things are of no use to him anymore.

Seeing that he is out-growing these old baby things helps Peter to be willing to let go of them and help his father repaint them for his little sister.

This is a cute story about change and growing up and the worries that children sometimes have about their siblings taking their place in the family. The art style of the book is also interesting because it includes pieces of patterned or textured paper for things like wallpaper, people’s clothing, the newspapers under the furniture being painted, and the baby’s lacy blanket. Other books by the same author also use this technique, such as Jennie’s Hat.