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Sweet or Sour?
Reading level 4 · First sentencesAges 3–5

Sweet or Sour?

by ReadRead · 90 sec

Yum! The candy is sweet. Ooh! The lemon is sour. A very first book for very new readers: one short sentence on every page, and a face that shows the word every time.

10pop-up spreads
14things to tap
2new words
Words in this book
sweetsourcandyeveryonefacefunnygrapeshello
Peek inside

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Inside the book

It is evening at the night market and the red lanterns are glowing. Mei tastes a stick of candied haws. Yum, it is sweet! Then she tries a lemon. Ooh, it is sour, and she makes a very funny face. Panda loves the sweet grapes, Dad gets a sour green plum, and everyone shares sweet watermelon. At the end, under the lanterns and the moon, there is sweet candy for everyone.

Mei makes a funny face: the lemon is sour, in Sweet or Sour?
Mei makes a funny face: the lemon is sour, in Sweet or Sour?
Mei, Dad and Panda arrive at the evening night market under red lanterns.
Mei, Dad and Panda arrive at the evening night market under red lanterns.
Yum! Mei tastes the sweet candied haws.
Yum! Mei tastes the sweet candied haws.
Under the moon and the lanterns, there is sweet candy for everyone.
Under the moon and the lanterns, there is sweet candy for everyone.

The new words in this book

sweet

Tastes like sugar or honey. It comes up 9 times, and every time somebody tastes something sweet (candied haws, grapes, a peach, watermelon) and shows it with a dreamy smile and little pink hearts.

sour

Tastes sharp, like a lemon. It comes up 8 times, and every time somebody bites a lemon, a green plum or a lime and makes a scrunched-up funny face, with a zing of yellow sparks.

Made for children just starting kindergarten. Each page has one short sentence (3 to 6 words) in one pattern: “Yum! The candy is sweet.” / “Ooh! The lemon is sour.” Only one word changes, so a child can say the page with you by the third spread. Every other word is one a 4-year-old already knows, like candy, lemon, grapes, peach, funny and face.

Questions to ask while you read

Pause after each spread and ask one question. There are no right answers; the point is to get your child talking.

  1. 1What can you see at the night market? Point to the red lanterns.
  2. 2What color is the candy on the stick? Is it sweet?
  3. 3Look at Mei’s face! Can you make a sour face too?
  4. 4What does Panda eat? Does Panda like it?
  5. 5Oh no, Dad! Is the green plum sweet or sour?
  6. 6Is the peach sweet or sour? How do you know?
  7. 7Who has the funniest face? Can you make one?
  8. 8Do you like watermelon? What color is it inside?
  9. 9Tap a fruit. Is it sweet or sour?
  10. 10Who gets sweet candy at the end? Count them.

How hard is this book?

4
Reading level · KFirst sentences

About 50 words, one short sentence at a time, one pattern that repeats.

52words in all
22different words
4.7words per sentence
5longest sentence
More books at this level
Words a child can sound out, by phonics step
Step 1 · short a, i, o25%
Step 2 · all short vowels37%
Step 3 · blends42%
Step 4 · magic e, ee/ai63%
Step 5 · ar/or, oo/ou87%
Step 6 · longer words100%
Grammar in this book
  • Questions × 2Tap! Sweet or sour?
Words that may stop a reader
candyeveryonehellohooraylemonwatermelonoohorfacepeach
All 21 words, most used first

sweet 9 · sour 8 · the 6 · is 5 · yum 4 · candy 2 · ooh 2 · or 2 · are · everyone · face · for · funny · grapes · hello · hooray · lemon · peach · plum · tap · watermelon

Names don’t count: the picture shows who it is.

Tips for parents

  • First time: use Read to me and just enjoy the pictures together. It takes about a minute and a half.
  • Act the words: a big dreamy smile on “sweet”, a scrunched-up sour face on “sour”.
  • Read it again and pause before the last word of each page, so your child can say “sweet” or “sour”.
  • Afterwards, taste something real together (a strawberry, a slice of lemon) and ask: sweet or sour?
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