Like Pickle Juice on a Cookie

“I had a bad August.

A very bad August.

As bad as pickle juice on a cookie.

As bad as a spiderweb on your leg.

As bad as the black parts of a banana.

I hope your August was better.

I really do.”

Julie Sternberg’s Like Pickle Juice on a Cookie opens with these lines, introducing us to 8-year-old Eleanor Abigail Kane, who has faced a long summer without her beloved babysitter Bibi. Not just any babysitter, Bibi has watched Eleanor her whole life and is the person who knows Eleanor best. When Bibi moves away from New York to take care of her sick father in Florida, the book follows Eleanor as she experiences the first major change in her life and learns to grieve and adjust.

Adults will find the book a quick, charming read. It is likely to make them feel nostalgic, whether they had a Bibi or lived in Brooklyn. Children will like reading about a character who feels the traumas of her young life as poignantly as they do. The book addresses a child’s grief and fear of sudden, drastic changes with sympathy, but without condescension. The humor of the book will reach all readers, aided greatly by simple and evocative drawings by Matthew Cordell.

Parents and children will enjoy reading the book together, but it is accessible for independent young readers, too.

While Julie Sternberg lives in Brooklyn now with her family, including two daughters, she grew up in Baton Rouge and attended the University Lab School and Episcopal High School. She signed books at Bistro Byronz at the end of March, giving cookies to her young readers when she signed their books. She previously was a lawyer; this is her first book, and she is working on another.

Incidentally, I asked an 8-year-old I know what he thought of the book, which he finished in less than two hours. He said, “This must be a magic book, because I found two dollars in my pocket after I finished it. Tomorrow, I might find a hamster!” His favorite part was near the end when Eleanor starts third grade.