105 Ways to Give a Book

The Thursday Three IX

Hug TimeHug Time, by Patrick McDonnell
A kitten wants to hug the whole word, so he travels around the world to hug everybody. He does a pretty good job of it, too. But then he sails home to hug his person. Cute enough, but not as well done as some of the McDonnell’s other titles. This ending quote made me feel kinda warm and fuzzy inside: “The world’s so big, and yet so small, it’s time that we embrace it all. That’s something that we all can do, start with the one who’s closest to you.” Awwwww.

How Big Is the World?How Big Is the World? by Britta Techentrup
Little Mole asks his papa “How big is the world?” His papa suggests he go find out, so he heads out to ask other animals. Each animal names a bigger and bigger world (the spider’s world is her web, the mouse’s world is the field, etc.) But by riding on the back of the whale, the mole sees how big the world really is and how it never ends. When he misses his family, they head home and papa is waiting for him. “How big is the world?” whispers papa. “As big as you want it to be,” says Little Mole quietly. Other than the serious disconnect between exploring the entire world and getting home by bedtime, I liked the book a lot. The illustrations are engaging, and the story is a great introduction to variety in the world around us conveyed with a sense of awe and wonder.

City LullabyCity Lullaby, written by Marilyn Singer, illustrated by Carll Cneut
A counting book set in the city, where a baby sleeps through all the noise and busyness around her/him. Bright and detailed pictures make this a fun counting book with city themes — dump trucks, taxi horns, and such. The art is on one side of the page, all lively and sometimes silly (notice the dog on the cell phone for nine annoying cell phones ringing.) On the other page, the text and a simple sketch of the baby’s sleeping face (line eyes with lashes, curved lines for nose and mouth, dots for freckles, and sometimes a curl). A fun title that would be especially perfect for city kids.

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