Plot Summary
A young girl is reassured by all the members of her family of their unwavering love for her not matter her mood. Through creative expressions of support, she learns that love will carry her through everything she might face in life.
Personal Reaction
This is such a tender and caring book. It made me wish my children were small again so that I might pull them onto my lap and read to them this wonderful story of love.
Memorable Literary Element
The book is resplendent with figurative language that will keep the reader giggling until the laughter "spurts and gurgles and spills like creek water across the empty sky." Alliteration such as "poems piled like pillows around your head" are fun to read aloud, while lines like "When you are cold, I will weave you a blanket from leftover sun." leave the reader warm and fuzzy.
Illustrations
The bright, colorful, quirky illustrations compliment the story perfectly. The child-like quality of each would, quite possibly, inspire children to pick up their crayons and create their own works of art.
A young girl is reassured by all the members of her family of their unwavering love for her not matter her mood. Through creative expressions of support, she learns that love will carry her through everything she might face in life.
Personal Reaction
This is such a tender and caring book. It made me wish my children were small again so that I might pull them onto my lap and read to them this wonderful story of love.
Memorable Literary Element
The book is resplendent with figurative language that will keep the reader giggling until the laughter "spurts and gurgles and spills like creek water across the empty sky." Alliteration such as "poems piled like pillows around your head" are fun to read aloud, while lines like "When you are cold, I will weave you a blanket from leftover sun." leave the reader warm and fuzzy.
Illustrations
The bright, colorful, quirky illustrations compliment the story perfectly. The child-like quality of each would, quite possibly, inspire children to pick up their crayons and create their own works of art.
Reviews/Awards
School Library Journal - An enchanting story of familial love. These relatives gather around and take turns comforting, cajoling, and keeping one child happy and out of harms way. Mom and Dad joyfully wait on her hand and foot when she is sick, sisters and brothers make silly faces to make the grumps go away, and her grandmother knits her a blanket from leftover sun should she ever be cold. When she gets lost, her grandfather breaks out an old-fashioned helicopter complete with swarming searchlights held by siblings and the family cat. The lyrical text, in short prose verse, invites loved ones to snuggle down together to share it over and over again, and the springtime repartee, …I will outleap the frog,/outbuzz the bee,/outwink the firefly, will delight read-aloud groups. Valérios acrylic childlike illustrations sparkle with so much color, expression, and engaging design that kids will hardly know where to look first. At times the whimsical characters look too similar to tell them apart, but that doesnt diminish the fun or the sentiment that familial love is unconditional. Great for springtime programs or family-tree units.–Wanda Meyers
Booklist - Spinelli offers an unusual approach to helping children understand their fears and feelings. Using a comforting refrain ("When you are . . ."), each member of the young girl's family reassures her when she is cold, sick, lonely, tired, grumpy, lost, and happy: "When you are afraid, / I will take your hand / and not let go-- / except once to borrow one hundred tiny stars / to spell out the words: YOU ARE SAFE." Appealingly offbeat, whimsical illustrations characterize the girl's emotions: when she's afraid, she's depicted in a Little Red Riding Hood outfit. Like a Technicolor dream, the art is full of movement and bright color, with smiling, happy people wafting across every spread. This will be great for lap sharing; children will feel warmed by the sense of close family ties. Julie Cummins
School Library Journal - An enchanting story of familial love. These relatives gather around and take turns comforting, cajoling, and keeping one child happy and out of harms way. Mom and Dad joyfully wait on her hand and foot when she is sick, sisters and brothers make silly faces to make the grumps go away, and her grandmother knits her a blanket from leftover sun should she ever be cold. When she gets lost, her grandfather breaks out an old-fashioned helicopter complete with swarming searchlights held by siblings and the family cat. The lyrical text, in short prose verse, invites loved ones to snuggle down together to share it over and over again, and the springtime repartee, …I will outleap the frog,/outbuzz the bee,/outwink the firefly, will delight read-aloud groups. Valérios acrylic childlike illustrations sparkle with so much color, expression, and engaging design that kids will hardly know where to look first. At times the whimsical characters look too similar to tell them apart, but that doesnt diminish the fun or the sentiment that familial love is unconditional. Great for springtime programs or family-tree units.–Wanda Meyers
Booklist - Spinelli offers an unusual approach to helping children understand their fears and feelings. Using a comforting refrain ("When you are . . ."), each member of the young girl's family reassures her when she is cold, sick, lonely, tired, grumpy, lost, and happy: "When you are afraid, / I will take your hand / and not let go-- / except once to borrow one hundred tiny stars / to spell out the words: YOU ARE SAFE." Appealingly offbeat, whimsical illustrations characterize the girl's emotions: when she's afraid, she's depicted in a Little Red Riding Hood outfit. Like a Technicolor dream, the art is full of movement and bright color, with smiling, happy people wafting across every spread. This will be great for lap sharing; children will feel warmed by the sense of close family ties. Julie Cummins
Promotion Idea
This book could be used in conjunction with a class study on emotions, such as: feeling safe, protected, cared for, loved, and, of course, happy. A lesson plan to support this can be found here.
This book could be used in conjunction with a class study on emotions, such as: feeling safe, protected, cared for, loved, and, of course, happy. A lesson plan to support this can be found here.
When You Are Happy read-along here
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