I Love You, Too!

January 13, 2014
Foreman (Friends) offers a familiar bedtime story with echoes of a modern classic of the genre, Guess How Much I Love You. As in that book, a young animal (in this case a golden-furred anthropomorphic bear) attempts to quantify his boundless love for a parent—while also hoping to postpone lights-out. After his bedtime story, Little Bear sets his imagination free, comparing his love for Dad to natural phenomena that reach toward infinity (“I love you more than all the snowflakes of winter,” says Little Bear. “And more than all the flowers of summer”), to which his father repeatedly responds, “I love you even more. Now go to sleep.” Foreman’s bold watercolors have a comforting, homespun resonance as Little Bear and Dad tromp through fields of snow and flowers in plaid robes and striped pajamas, and even fly among the stars. Eventually, they return to the bedroom where Little Bear gets the last line—and laugh. Readers young and old should easily recognize themselves in Foreman’s portrait of a patient, long-suffering adult and a sly child whose delay tactics prove very effective. Ages 4–9.

March 1, 2014

PreS-K-Foreman sets up a bedtime scene between a bear and his cub that will be familiar to many households. The father finishes a bedtime story, but Little Bear, who is not that sleepy, stalls by saying, "I love you." Dad quickly replies, "I love you, too." Little Bear replies, "I love you three." This repartee goes back and forth using myriad comparisons such as "I love you more than all the birds and the leaves on the trees" or "all the fishes in the sea" as bedtime is postponed. The attractive watercolor artwork fills entire spreads as the artist depicts all the stars in the sky or the snowflakes of winter, illustrating the vast love of a parent and child. The large font and simple sentence structures are perfect for beginning readers, and adults will enjoy sharing this reassuring bedtime tale one-on-one and chuckling at the conclusion.-Blair Christolon, Prince William Public Library System, Manassas, VA

Copyright 2014 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

July 1, 2014
Little Bear delays bedtime as long as he can by enumerating how much he loves his father; the wakeful cub eventually lulls Dad to sleep. With soothing repetition and dreamy watercolors, this is a cozy and attractive but predictable bedtime story that doesn't stand out in the crowded field of "I love you as much as..." stories.

(Copyright 2014 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)