MY LOVE WILL BE WITH YOU
by Laura Krauss Melmed and illustrated by Henri Sørensen
An unapologetically sentimental companion to the pair’s 1993 goo-fest, I Love You as Much …, this Father’s Day offering presents a series of animal fathers offering patterned assurances to their babies: “Said the father eagle to his child, / ‘Someday you’ll soar through a high mountain pass.’ / Said the father lion to his child, / ‘Someday you’ll hunt in the long, waving grass.’ ” Sorensen’s oil montages are equally formulaic, placing cute father-child pairs on the left and the now-grown animal fulfilling its destiny on the right. The hyperrealism of the art undercuts the whole effect with their accuracy, the images on the page warring with the scientific truth that most, if not all, of these male animals are not exactly famed for their paternally nurturing characteristics. (Picture book. 2-5)