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CM . . .
. Volume XXIII Number 7. . . .October 21, 2016
excerpt:
Mama Loves Me contains three stories: “Mama, How Long Will You Love Me?”, “Mama, Will You Hold My Hand?”, and “Mama, Will I Be Yours Forever?”. All three stories feature the same small bear (Sammy) and Mama bear. In each story, Sammy asks Mama a question (indicated by each story's title), and the content of the story contains Mama's reply.
Throughout Mama Loves Me, the images (which appear to be done in watercolour) are fairly neutral in tone, adding a gentle and calm feel to the text. The relationship between Sammy and Mama is depicted as being close and loving, with Mama very involved in Sammy’s life. They play, fish, walk, fly kites, read, and dance together. Absent from the story, both in text and image, is a sibling or a father figure. Overall, Mama Loves Me is a book that parent and child can read together and compare Sammy and Mama's relationship to their own. This book would make a nice addition to a child's personal library, or it would be a nice gift to a new parent experiencing the intense feelings that accompany parenthood for the first time. Highly Recommended. Karyn Miehl, a mother of two and a secondary school English teacher, lives in Kingsville, ON.
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Of the three stories, I most prefer “Mama, Will I Be Yours Forever?” both for its content and its originality. The first two stories, while both gentle, flowing and positive in message, use more familiar phrases and imagery (ex. How long is always? Miles and miles forever; as high as a giant tree, as magical as a starry night; as wild as a windy day.) Even so, such phrases and imagery are used often for a reason: they paint a vivid picture and are comforting in their use. A child hearing similar sentiments in various children's books (such as David Van Buren's I Love You As Big as the World) can make connections between the texts and to their own lives.
The preferred story, “Mama, Will I Be Yours Forever?”, ends with every parent's feelings:
Sammy asks, "Mama, will I change?" and Mama replies, " You will become big and strong . . . But you will be my little bear forever."