Guess How Much I Love You

Guess How Much I Love You

Written by: Sam McBratney

Illustrated by: Anita Jeram

Age Group: Kindergarten and 1st Grade

Published: 1994

The book Guess  How Much I Love You is about a little Nutbrown Hare and a big Nutbrown Hare. Throughout the book the little Nutbrown Hare tells the big Nutbrown Hare how much he loves loves her. He starts out having the big hare guess who much he loves her, with the big hare responding that she doesn't think she can guess that. The little hare starts naming things that go from little to bigger and bigger, and each time the big hare is able to take it to the next level and being able to beat what the little hare says. At the end of the book the little hare is about to go to bed and says to the big hare "I love you to the moon" and then falls asleep. The big hare responds whispering in her child's ear, whispering "I love you to the moon and back".

This book has a great main lesson to children telling them the importance of love. Everyone needs love in their life, and you need to tell and be able to receive it. It also reminds children that they don't always need to be the one who has to win, because when it comes to showing your love to your friends and family, you don't have a winner or a loser. 

This book has great pictures. The pictures are just as sweet as the words in the book are. The watercolors that Anita uses, makes the words that Sam writes just even more meaningful. The words in this book aren't hard to read, they are easy for young children to learn and read by themselves, or with an adult. The words in the book are very repetitive, so children can easily memorize the words and say them back. The reason I love this book so much is because of the beautiful words with amazing pictures. 

This book is very well known, and it seems that everyone has at least read it or has heard of this book. Children love this book, because it gives them a good feeling inside, and adults love this book for the exact same reason, that it makes them happy. I recommend that everyone reads this book, you can read it over and over again and never get sick of it and just find it cuter each time. 

Olivia

Olivia

Written and Illustrated by: Ian Falconer

Age Group: 1st Grade

Published: 2000

The book Olivia is the first in a series of books about a pig named Olivia that has a lot of energy and is good at lots of things that she tends to wear out everyone around her and herself. Olivia starts out telling us w ho she lives with and her family members. She goes through her daily routine of getting ready, including getting dressed and trying on various outfits that for all different weather conditions. She goes to the beach with her mother and brother, and instead of just making a plain sand castle she makes a really big and detailed castle that looks like a real building you would see in New York City. Olivia does all these activities and never seems to get tired. At the end of the day though, Olivia goes to bed and tells her mother that she loves her even though she knows she wears her out and makes her tired at the end of the day.

Throughout this book Olivia gives lessons about following yourself and what you enjoy. Olivia also has to deal with consequences from her mother and father if she doesn't follow instructions and do what it is right. When her parents tell her to do something, she always listens, which shows children reading the book that it is important to listen to your mother and father and the people in your life that care and want to take care of you. The book shows  Olivia making smart choice, that children can learn from, example, when in the sun and getting burnt, to leave and get out of the sun. Olivia has a great imagination that can make the children reach and learn.

The text that the author uses in this book, i don't think is too hard for children to understand. The pictures in this book do a great job telling the story, so with the words really helping children understand the book. The author only uses 4 colors when making the pictures for this book, black, white, grey and red, which is really effective. They only use the color red when talking about things that Olivia does or wears. 

Overall I would recommend this book. All the children that I know love this book because of all the activities that Olivia is involved in, that they feel they can do anything too. This book has so many funny parts, that children love to laugh at and read over and over again.

A Bad Case of Stripes

A Bad Case of Stripes

Written and Illustrated by: David Shannon

Age Group: 3rd and 4th Grade

Published: 1998

The book A Bad Case of Stripes is about a girl named Camilla Cream and she loves lima beans, but doesn't want to eat them because she wants to fit in at school. She wakes up one day and discovers that she has stripes all over her body, but since she isn't contagious the doctor says that she can still go to school. At school, all the other kids start making fun of her and saying different colors, making the stripes on her body change colors, which the disturbance has the faculty send her home. The family has other doctors to come and check her condition, giving her pills that will hopefully help. The next morning she wakes up and is a pill. The media and newspaper now get involved, and Camilla's case gets worse and worse. The family has an old woman come and visit her and offers her Lima Beans. At first Camilla wants nothing to do with them, but then she accepts. and suddenly she becomes all back to normal. Camilla learns her lesson and is never self conscious again.

This book has a great lesson for the kids, it teaches them to never be self conscious, and that if you love something (just as much as Camilla loves lima beans) then you should show that and be proud. At young ages, kids tend to be self conscious of different things about them, like skin color, if they wear glasses, what kinds of toys they have and many more. This book teaches children that they should be proud of who they are and we all have different things we love, and no one's is any stranger than someone else's. 

This book, has very complicated words and language use that would be tough for young children, so I gave this book about a 3rd or 4th grade level of reading. Children at young ages would love to have this book be read to them, because the illustrations in the book are great and go along with the story line perfectly. All of the colors in this book make it what it is. I enjoy reading this book more and more, because of all the pictures that bring me into the book and make me want to hear more of the story.

Overall, I would recommend this book. I think that it is a great story for children, they learn a very valuable lesson that they will use for the rest of their lives, while looking at the great pictures and reading the funny story.