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Lovely to look at and sweet in sentiment if a little shaky in poetic expression.

While not poetically perfect, this is an undeniably sweet salute to the enduring nature of parent-child bonds.

Warm and lovely watercolor illustrations of an adult bear and cub, both genderless, enjoying special moments of togetherness make this sentimental celebration of family work. Snuggling, picnicking, singing, and dancing together are beautifully rendered and expressed. Boylan also specifically references the strength of the family relationship as a support for the all-too-familiar phenomenon of separation anxiety in a very calm and reassuring way. “Because me and you”—grammar aside—“are true friends through-and-through, / you know all that I have we can share. / Like the thoughts that I think and I keep in my bank / for the times I know you won’t be there.” This theme is reiterated at the end: “So the times you’re alone or times I’m not at home / and you feel your heart starting to fuss, / borrow these thoughts and make them your own / and then think all these things about us.” The final image is the cub sleeping peacefully, dreaming of snuggles, and secure that they are loved. The tone is forgivably syrupy and effusive at times, but it often strikes just the right note: “I love when we have quiet time all alone, / when there’s no one around for a while. / And when I look at you and then you look at me / and we just take a moment and smile.”

Lovely to look at and sweet in sentiment if a little shaky in poetic expression. (Board book. 1-5)

Pub Date: Oct. 16, 2018

ISBN: 978-1-4867-1545-9

Page Count: 20

Publisher: Flowerpot Press

Review Posted Online: Nov. 20, 2018

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2019

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THE ABCS OF LOVE

Perfect for Valentine’s Day, but the syrupy sweetness will cloy after the holiday.

Animal parents declare their love for their offspring in alphabetical order.

Each page displays an enormous capital letter, one line of verse with the keyword capitalized, and a loving nonhuman parent gazing adoringly at their baby. “A is for Always. I always love you more. / B is for Butterfly kisses. It’s you that I adore.” While not named or labelled as such, the A is also for an alligator and its hatchling and B is for a butterfly and a butterfly child (not a caterpillar—biology is not the aim of this title) interacting in some way with the said letter. For E there are an elephant and a calf; U features a unicorn and foal; and X, keyed to the last letter of the animal’s name, corresponds to a fox and three pups. The final double-page spread shows all the featured creatures and their babies as the last line declares: “Baby, I love you from A to Z!” The verse is standard fare and appropriately sentimental. The art is cartoony-cute and populated by suitably loving critters on solid backgrounds. Hearts accent each scene, but the theme of the project is never in any doubt.

Perfect for Valentine’s Day, but the syrupy sweetness will cloy after the holiday. (Board book. 1-3)

Pub Date: Dec. 1, 2020

ISBN: 978-1-7282-2095-6

Page Count: 28

Publisher: Sourcebooks Wonderland

Review Posted Online: Jan. 26, 2021

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2021

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HAPPY IN OUR SKIN

The combination of lovingly humorous and detailed mixed-media illustrations and infectious rhymes will cause little ones and...

More than skin deep, this rhyming paean to diversity offers readers an array of families of all colors and orientations, living and loving one another in a vibrant city setting.

A giggling baby is tummy-tickled by her white and black mothers (or white mother and black father—impressively, the illustration leaves room for interpretation) in New York’s Central Park in its summertime glory. "This is how we all begin: / small and happy in our skin." This celebration of skin not only extols the beauty and value of various skin colors, but also teaches the importance of skin as an essential body part: “It keeps the outsides out / and your insides in.” Park, public-pool, and block-party scenes allow readers to luxuriate in a teeming city where children of all colors, abilities, and religions enjoy their families and neighbors. The author and illustrator do not simply take a rote, tokenistic approach to answering the cry for diverse books; the words and pictures depict a much-needed, realistic representation of the statement “it takes a village to raise a child” when a child skins her knee and many rush to her aid and comfort. Though her palette of browns is a little limited, Tobia creates sheer joy with her depictions of everything from unibrows, dimples, and birthmarks to callouts to recognizable literary characters.

The combination of lovingly humorous and detailed mixed-media illustrations and infectious rhymes will cause little ones and their families to pore over this book again and again. (Picture book. 2-5)

Pub Date: Aug. 25, 2015

ISBN: 978-0-7636-7002-3

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Candlewick

Review Posted Online: May 11, 2015

Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2015

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