Sam McBratney (1943–2020)

Little Nutbrown Hare and his father, Big Nutbrown Hare, have what at first glance seems like a love competition in this sweet reassurance tale from Northern Irish author Sam McBratney and English illustrator Anita Jeram. As the younger hare declares his love, only to be continually outdone by his elder - "I love you as high as I can reach," the son says, but his father can reach higher - it gradually emerges that the two are enacting a bedtime ritual in which their mutual love is reaffirmed, show more all while the elder tacitly signals his protection, and the younger his admiration.

A contemporary classic for young children, Guess How Much I Love You was originally published in 1994, and is a book I have read many times over the years, although I am only now (in 2016) getting around to recording my response to it. This edition is a 20th Anniversary one, and contains a brief note from both author and illustrator. I've always loved this gentle tale, with its humorous and indulgent papa hare, and its cute-as-a-button hare son. McBratney perfectly captures their back and forth, just as Anita Jeram captures their loving bond in her charming ink and watercolor illustrations. I particularly love the contrasts between Big and Little Nutbrown Hare, as they gesticulate. Recommended most highly to anyone looking for reassurance tales for younger children! show less

I enjoyed this book for many reasons.
I especially enjoyed the book because it challenges its readers to broaden their perspective on other's strengths/weaknesses. For example, the book begins with the kangaroo, duck, and field mouse laughing at each other because each is unable to perform certain tasks (the duck can't jump, the mouse can't float, the kangaroo can't catch his tail). However, they all become unhappy as they bully each other and instead decide to focus on and celebrate the show more tasks that they CAN perform (the duck CAN float, the kangaroo CAN jump, the mouse CAN catch his tail). I like that this challenges students to stop focusing on the things that they can't do (and the things that others can't do) but rather appreciate each other's individual talents and strengths. This book also illustrates that bullying others can harm friendships and hurt others very deeply. For example, the book reads: "No one was happy because each had made fun of someone else and someone else had made fun of them."
I also liked the book because of some of its textual features. For example, key words are a bigger font than the other words. The words "can" and "Yes I can" are always larger than the rest of the text. Key sentences such as, "No one likes to be laughed at," are larger as well. I appreciate these textual feature because it will make the important concepts of the book clear and prominent to the reader. They will see more clearly that "Yes I can," is an empowering and important statement. Additionally, the way some words are displayed gives clues to the reader about each word's meaning. For example, the letters in the word "floating" are spaced out and sit unevenly, as if they are floating. The words, "I can jump over a big, big log!" are curved as if they are jumping. I appreciate this textual feature because it will help young readers make sense of, and comprehend the text more successfully.
The main idea of this story is that we should never focus on our own weaknesses or on other's weaknesses, but instead celebrate our many strengths. When we do this, we can live peacefully and create lasting friendships with others. show less

I found this book to be very simple but very powerful. There are three baby bears that are referred to as the most wonderful baby bears in the whole wide world but by being told so they began to wonder what if one was better than the other. These are all questions that siblings have wondered. My sister is only 16 months older than me and I know we always used to fight over who mom's favorite was. This book is a fantastic gateway to talk about this topic. I mentioned earlier that I loved how show more simple this book was and that goes for the illustrations. Each bear is just a little different but that changes everything in the world for them. One of the bears mentioned that 'I'm only the littlest, everybody is bigger than me!' and he worried that that may be the reason why he wouldn't be the favorite. I can see this being a very important and special nighttime book to young readers. show less

A fun book that my three-year-old daughter has already added into her regular rotation. The artwork is beautiful, and the story is a simple and fun one, with just a hint of magic. Particularly good for children that may have imaginary fears of their own!