Beginning in the home - "This is a house. It's a very big ... But it's not as big as my love for you." Take a step back to the town which is also big but "it's not as big as my love for you." Now onto the city, the world and the universe.
This is not a new idea of course – Guess How much I love you by Sam McBratney always comes to mind when I see a book which tries to express the enormity of love felt by a parent for their child but Big Love is a worthy addition to this cannon.
In this book, the digital art has been created with a skilled hand. The illustrator’s work as a graphic designer shines through. The illustrations are very appealing and vibrant and contain some wonderful touches of humour. I really like the way the text is positioned in interesting ways using the illustrations themselves as frames to hold the words. The contrast of busy pages with lots of action and text, followed by the quieter refrain pages, also work really well.
The cover is very striking and I like the way the designer has used a raised text. The end papers are pretty but really just decorative although we do see this same flower design used on several pages. The way we read the text across the spread on the first double page adds interest. I would have enjoyed seeing more use of this format.
The inclusivity, where different types of families are portrayed, is done very naturally. Grandma on the laptop screen is especially contemporary and timely. The final page, with all those scattered bits and pieces, invites readers revisit the text and more importantly to enjoy a meaningful book conversation.
Big Love is a 2022 CBCA Notable book in the Early Childhood category. Here is a review from Children's Books Daily that is well worth reading.
Take a look at my recent post - This Gift is for you where I mention other books which are designed to be shared between a parent and a child as a way to express deep love.
No comments:
Post a Comment