Sheila Rae, the Brave

Written by Kevin Henkes

Narrated by Laura Hamilton

Sheila Rae believes that she is not afraid of anything. She steps on cracks, walks backward with her eyes closed, and teases her sister for her fears.

But when Sheila Rae gets lost one day, she discovers maybe, just maybe, she isn’t quite as brave as she thought she was.

A Live Oak Media audio production.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Live Oak Media
• Release date: Jan 1, 2002
• ISBN: 9781430115458

Kevin Henkes

Kevin Henkes has been praised both as a writer and as an illustrator and is the recipient of the Children’s Literature Legacy Award for his lasting contribution to literature for children. He received the Caldecott Medal for Kitten’s First Full Moon; Caldecott Honors for Waiting and Owen; two Newbery Honors, one for Olive’s Ocean and one for The Year of Billy Miller; and Geisel Honors for Waiting and Penny and Her Marble. His other books include The World and Everything in It; A House; A Parade of Elephants; Chrysanthemum; and the beloved Lilly’s Purple Plastic Purse. Kevin Henkes lives with his family in Madison, Wisconsin.

Reviews for Sheila Rae, the Brave

[bre201 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Sheila Rae is brave and fearless. Her little sister Louise is not. One day, Sheila Rae decides to walk home a new way from school and gets lost. Sheila Rae no longer feels brave. Her little sister comes to her rescue and discovers that she too can be brave.

[rwertl1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I enjoyed this book for a number of reasons. I really enjoyed the character development of Sheila Rae and her little sister, and how well it ties into the plot of the story. The story is engaging for young readers, because the language is so repetitive. I also really enjoyed the characters in the story, and how everyone is so impressed with Sheila Rae because she is truly so brave and fearless. Her sister looks up to her because of this, however it is her little sister that ends up saving the day. I thought the overall message was really nice, because it can help little kids realize that anyone can be brave and a hero. The illustrations in the story were also bright and colorful, which is something little kids would like to look at. This story pushes readers to reconsider what they think is brave, and maybe push themselves. When Sheila Rae is walking home and she thinks that she is lost, she is able to rely on her little sister to help her find a way home. This can help kids to realize that unsuspected heroes are the best kind. This overall message is some important for kids, especially younger ones.

[cheryl_in_cc_nv · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Quibbles - please don't abuse trees or growl at stray dogs or ride your bike no-handed, sans helmet. Other than that - love the spunky sisters!

[mbabst-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Being brave is a characteristic that may not come upon people as normally as it may others. Shelia Rae is a fearless mouse; growling at stray dogs, stepping on the sidewalk cracks. Her sister Louise is constantly nagged for being to scared to do anything. Shelia Rae's pride is overcome when her sister helps her find her way home. Louise was now a fearless mouse similar to her sister. This book is a lesson can teach children to not let their pride and ego over take themselves. It allows the readers to learn that no matter the name calling, the constant nagging, Louise always knew deep down that she was brave. Everyone is brave in their own unique way and for Shelia Rae and Louise, it turned out bravery was on the same page. I would read this book to a group of first graders because they will have a better understanding of the word bravery. They will be able to recite back to the teacher instances in which they were brave.

[danielleshorr · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

CollectionsPicture bookGrade: K-3Modern fantasySheila Rae, The Brave is a cute storybook that depicts a young, but very brave mouse. Sheila Rae thinks that she is the braver than all of the rest, and that her sister is a "scaredy-cat". The main message of the story is family because when Sheila Rae finally gets lost and is afraid, her little "scaredy-cat" sister was there to help her, and show her the way home. Without the help of her little sister Sheila Rae would have been lost in the woods. Even though Sheila Rae's little sister was the hero, she was very mature about the situation. She was not condescending to Sheila like she was to her when she was scared. "When they reached their own yard and the gate was closed behind them Sheila Rae said, "Louise, you are brave. You are fearless." "We both are," said Louise. And they walked backwards into the house with their eyes closed" (Henkes). Besides the main message, another aspect of the book that I enjoyed were the illustrations. The illustrations are big, colorful, and do an effective job of showing the progression of the story. I also noticed that the illustrations do a great job of conveying emotions. At the beginning of the story Sheila Rae always had her head up in the air. She was very proud. However, by the time she was lost in the woods she had her chin all the way to her chest. At the end of the story both Sheila Rae and her sister were proud of themselves for getting home safely, and seemed to have developed a new bond.

[parejess · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This was a feel-good sibling story. Sheila Rae is your typical school girl who isn't afraid of anything and can fight whatever gets in her way while Louise is scared of everything and always wants her sister by her side. However, when Sheila Rae realizes that she maybe isn't so invincible, it is Louise to the rescue. This has the great message that everyone gets scared or needs help every once in a while, and even the most unsuspecting person can come to the rescue. Sheila Rae is the big sister, who gets helped out by her little sister, and this is a call to all families out there that the bigger and older person isn't always the boss; oftentimes, everyone has to work together to find the best solution. Sheila Rae wanted to try a new way home, and Louise helped them find it. I guess you can say that this book is about teamwork and learning to cooperate with each other, too.

[imandayeh · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Sheila Rae is very brave. It takes just one mistake to show Sheila the true meaning of what it is to be brave. This endearing story holds a very important lesson when Sheila feels so brave that she can walk home from school a different way. After she gets lost and rescued by her sister Sheila knows that being brave also means being careful. Loved this story as I love every Henkes book.

[abigailadams26 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Sheila Rae was one brave mouse! Unlike her younger sister Louise, she wasn't afraid of the dark, of thunder and lightning, or of big black dogs. She liked to pretend that the trees were monsters that needed to be vanquished, and enjoyed riding her bicycle with no hands, while keeping her eyes closed. But when Sheila Rae announced one day that she was going to walk home from school using a different route, scorning Louise's timidity, she soon discovered that there was something she was afraid of after all. Luckily, Louise was there to lend a hand...Another of Kevin Henkes' marvelous "Mouse Tales," Sheila Rae, the Brave is an engaging tale of a young mouse who learns that everyone feels fear, at one point or another, and that sometimes, those who seem like "scaredy-cats" on the outside, can draw upon hidden stores of courage. As always, I enjoyed Henkes' spot-on depiction of the childhood experience - as one of three sisters myself, I particularly appreciated that this charming tale concerned two sisters - and found his illustrations adorable. Definitely one I would recommend, especially to young children who are very timid themselves, or who scorn the timid.

[mmarcel2011 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Sheila is not afraid of anything. She is brave and has no fears. Sheila gets lost on her way home and her little sister, who Sheila said was not brave like her, finds the way home. Fear is a major thing to young children and this book will explore being afraid and also being brave.

[rayjones63 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This book is about a girl who is very fearless and is willing to try anything and everything. There is nothing in this world that she is afraid of, until one day she walks home from school a different way and gets lost in the forest. She was scared and worried until her sister Louise found her and comforted her. They walked the rest of the way home together and Sheila tells Louise that she is the brave one, and Louise says “No we are brave together.”

[ssajj_2 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Sheila Rae was very brave mouse and she was not afraid of anything. She always did things that others her age were afraid to do. Sheila Rae decided she wanted to take a new route home, her sister Louise did not think this would be a very good idea. Sheila Rae decided she was going to take the new way anyway. Soon Sheila realized that nothing looked familiar and she became very afraid, she was so afraid that she called out for her family. Her sister Louise revealed herself in this moment and showed Sheila the way home.

[ktextor_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This book is about a mouse named Shelia Rae who is not afraid of anything. She steps on cracks, growls and cats and dogs and swings from trees. She thinks her sister is a scaredy cat and one day she tried to walk home from school using a different route but gets lost. When she is lost and scared her sister is able to help her find her way back home and while walking home while Shelia Rae is scared her sister is not. They find their way back home and Shelia Rae tells her sister that she is the bravest of them all! Very cute read.

[bamabreezin4 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I thought this book was good for struggling readers. It has few lines per page, repetition, picture support, and easy vocabulary.

[necampos · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Reading Level 2.5Sheila Rae is a story about a brave little mouse. Little Shelia is not afraid of anything and everyone is scared of her because of her courage fearlessness. One day Sheila winds up in a place she has never been and got really frightened. This story just shows children that even the bravest person in the world gets scared and that it is okay. Also, through Sheila's sister Louise, we see a fearsome baby mouse learn to be brave.

[kmsmith13 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is a cute story about a mouse who isn't scared of anything until one day she gets lost on the way home from school. Her sister finds her and knows the way home and the mouse now thinks her sister is the bravest person in the world. Her sister exclaims that they both are fearless and brave. This would be a great book to read to siblings. This would teach them to stick together and care for each other. I would recommend this to first/second graders.

[cgammerman · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Again, this Henkes book is great for children to read and to be read aloud in class! I think every child can relate to louise and being scared and this book could possibly help them to get over some of their fears. I would recommend this book to all ages and I still really enjoy reading it.

[emilee_3 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

This book is a good book to read when teaching children about the benefits of not being overly confident.

[mbberg · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I really enjoyed this book. I really like Kevin Henkes stories. I just read Chrysanthemum. I thought this story did a good job of teaching children that it is ok to be scared, and it is ok to need other's for support and strength. I also liked how it was her little sister who helped her out in the end. I think this shows children that their brothers and sisters are there if they every need any help with anything.