MOMMY, DADDY PLEASE TEACH ME!

Kids ask their parents to instruct them how to do a range of activities in this picture-book celebration of parenting.

This rhyming series installment features children of various ages—beginning with a baby and moving on to older children—requesting that their parents help them learn to do things for themselves: “Don’t just clothe me; teach me how / To dress my best for years from now.” Whether it’s practicing good hygiene, learning to cook meals, using money, or cleaning up messes, the kids make clear that they want to be involved. Author Brown’s previous works, such as What I Tell Myself FIRST (2019), focus on self-worth, and this book reiterates that message; readers may find it problematic that only a child in a wheelchair is shown to suffer from self-doubt, however. Ranucci’s beautiful, cartoonlike illustrations feature diverse families, some of whom are multiracial, all working together in loving environments. Brown’s rhymes are appropriate for the board-book set, although some archaic language (“More alert, I look to thee”) and emphasis on outdated gender roles (“boy and girls, ties and pearls”) may cause stumbles. Other awkward phrases obscure meaning to reach for rhyme (“A skill or trade, I will need! / Soon my job to do for me”).

Illustrations of diverse families enhance this work but don’t make up for the uneven rhymes.