Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
This short meditation by married cocreators Stewart and Small (The Gardener) opens as a young woman slips past a New York Public Library lion with a book clutched to her chest. "I take this book," Stewart begins, "to be my friend" (the girl, now settled on a city fire escape, begins to read); "To chew on it while you read it" (a mother and baby share a book as the baby gnaws one corner); "To grab for it when I need it" (a young bed-goer searches under the nightstand with a flashlight). Within amethyst-washed spreads by Small, the book covers are picked out in contrasting colors-a gray-blue beach read, the yellow-tinged covers of a J.S. Bach composition. The makers catalogue more book joys before a ringing final phrase: "A treasure for a lifetime, this book friend of mine." Small's ink-and-wash spreads concentrate in particular on the readers' faces; though they appear largely unrelated to one another, they emerge as genuine, ordinary people united by a love of reading. While the volume is unlikely to convert nonreaders, those who live and breathe books will understand the passion that Stewart and Small celebrate. Ages 3-6. (Aug.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
PreS-Gr 3--In a lovely salute to the power of reading, brief text meets exquisitely drawn pen and ink illustrations, brushed with a wash of purple. Stewart and Small showcase individuals of various ages interacting with books and include visuals of the shoes-off, stockings-only comfort of those deeply lost in their books, a baby chewing a tasty cover, or a reader taking a deep sniff inside a well-loved work. Whether it's reading aloud to an invisible crowd or finding pleasure while reading on a sandy beach, book lovers everywhere are encouraged to remember their own book friendship, a small "treasure for a lifetime" and a celebration of the devoted relationship between reader and book. VERDICT Bibliophiles unite. This is a glorious first-purchase for all libraries.--Mary Elam, Learning Media Services, Plano ISD, TX
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Review by Kirkus Book Review
Finding a special book is like discovering a new best friend; Stewart and Small celebrate the friendships between books and readers.Color-washed in soothing purples, Small's trademark loose drawings depict characters of multiple gender presentations, races, and ages from infant to adult. A baby on its parent's lap chews a book cover. Waking at night, a scared child reaches for a comforting book. A naturalist in the field refers to a guide to identify butterflies. Other examples show readers inspired to draw the story they've just read, perform a dramatic reading for an audience, translate the notes of a score into music, or simply read for pleasure on the beach. Within each spread, that reader's special book stands out in a splash of contrasting color. Particularly friendly to early readers, the text is simple and written in the tone and form of a vow of friendship. It begins: "I take this book / to be my friend" and ends "A treasure for a lifetime, / this book friend of mine." Short rhyming couplets describe the scenes on most spreads and explore the wide-ranging relationships readers have with books, including a book's memory-evoking scent: "To open it wide / and put my nose inside."A book likely to be snapped up by book lovers. (Picture book. 4-6) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
