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Summary
Summary
From author Janet Lawler comes a charming story celebrating the power of love, with warm and tender art from debut picture-book illustrator Anna Brown. Young readers will delight in following along families of foxes, bunnies, and bears as they learn about the nature of unconditional love in Love Is Real.
Reviews (4)
Publisher's Weekly Review
In impeccably rhymed couplets, Lawler (Snowzilla) makes the case that love is all about actions in a story that feels simultaneously old-fashioned and of-the-moment. Newcomer Brown assembles cleanly laid-out digital collages whose soft corrugated and fabric textures and muted palette create a welcoming forest neighborhood where rabbit, bear, and fox families live in tidy cottages. "Love holds on to steer your bike/ and packs a picnic lunch you like," writes Lawler as Brown shows the three families heading out into the forest for a day of picnicking, game-playing, tree-climbing, and scrape-bandaging (presumably after an off-screen tumble). Later, the animals return home for gentle nighttime activities: "Love unknots your tangled hair/ and finds a special book to share," reads the text as one young fox brushes the other's tail; on the facing page, they sprawl out on their bunk beds for a bedtime story. Though the rhymes may be too sweet for some palates, this well-matched pair maintains an even-keeled tone throughout-there are no major emotional highs or lows, just a steady sense of comfort. Ages 4-8. (Jan.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Horn Book Review
Love is in the little things / that fill my heart until it sings." After this first line, the poem lists everyday deeds family members do for one another (mostly "little things" parents do for children). It's a purposeful poem, but the down-to-earth examples ring true, making it less sentimental. The attractive illustrations, digitally collaged with textured papers, feature three different animal families. (c) Copyright 2014. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
Real love is expressed through the many seemingly small acts that take place every day. Brown uses textured paper to create digital collages that show bear, bunny and fox families engaged in a wide range of activities. Usually, an older or bigger animal is helping or playing with a younger or smaller one. Occasionally, the younger ones assist one another, as in climbing a tree or untangling knotted fur. Playing hideand-seek, applying a bandage, freeing a kite from a tree and tying shoelaces are some gestures of real love. Lawler, perhaps in an attempt to stay true to the rhyme structure, provides at least one singularly odd example: "Love plays lion in a crouch / and snuggles closer on the couch." One side of the spread shows a young bunny about to pounce on the ball of yarn his mother is knitting from, while the next page features the two side by side with the little rabbit curled up under a blanket. In the end, the message is clear: "Love does all these little things / to fill your heart until it sings. / Love is real the whole day through. / It's always there-- // from me to you." Although the art may charm the preschool set, the saccharine and singsong text fall flat. An admirable message delivered in a lackluster manner--pass. (Picture book. 3-5)]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Booklist Review
For animal lovers and feel-good-story enthusiasts, this offers the best of both worlds. In this cozy tale, preschoolers will discover, alongside furry friends, just what it means to love. Through warm and fuzzy images, Lawler and Brown depict bunny, fox, and bear families demonstrating their love for one another through the little things they do each and every day. Kids will learn that love comes in all varieties, from the simple joy of making someone laugh ( Love can be a silly clown who makes you smile ), to curling up together with a good book ( Love unknots your tangled hair / and finds a special book to share ). The cute rhymes and simple diction make for an excellent read-aloud. Meanwhile, Brown's colored-paper and Photoshop art lends a soft, comforting texture to the grinning, two-dimensional animal families. Ideal for snuggling under the blankets at bedtime.--Miller, Annie Copyright 2010 Booklist
