From School Library Journal:
Over the course of a day, several baby animals ask their mothers whether they love them. In each instance, the parent compares her love to the protective, life-giving environment in which the creature lives: "I love you as the pond loves you, wide and calm beneath you, giving you food and places to swim," says Mama duck. Finally, a human child asks the same question and is assured of a love that is as constant as the stars, "Forever, and ever, and always." The lyrical text is spare and patterned, and the repeated phrases invite participation. The illustrations, all double-page spreads done in watercolor, ink, and colored pencils, are signature Tafuri, large and uncluttered. The extra-wide book design enables the illustrator to present a panoramic view of each animal's habitat before zooming in on a close-up of parent and child in the following spread. The colors are muted as befits the quiet story, and the many strokes depicting animal feathers and fur are striking. While this is not a new subject for picture books, youngsters need many assurances of parental love. This one is perfect for bedtime sharing.
From Publishers Weekly:
In this tender bedtime book, seven young creatures ask in turn a single, important question: "Do you love me, Mama?" The answer in each case is the same: "forever and ever and always," but it is preceded by different, lyrical similes. Mama Rabbit loves her baby "as the earth loves you, warm and snug around you, giving you a warm place to sleep"; Mama Mouse loves her child "as the wild rye loves you, gently swaying above you, giving you food and cover from harm." As the characters speak, the pictures quietly show the progression of the sun and moon to indicate the passage of time from midmorning to evening. The book's oversized pages seem to enfold the reader like a hug, and the full-bleed watercolor-and-ink illustrations are sumptuously yet tidily rendered, bringing to life the lushness of the woodland setting while maintaining a comforting sense of order. So stunningly detailed are Tafuri's (Have You Seen My Duckling?) dusky, downy-coated animals that the pink-skinned human mother and genderless child shown on the final spread seem almost bland in comparison. A compositional strategy gently underlines the point of the narrative: the spreads in which the little ones ask their anxious question are framed as medium or long shots, while the mothers make their reassuring reply in snuggly close-ups. A soothing and sturdy choice.
From Kirkus Reviews:
Six beautiful mother-and-baby animal pairs--some rendered larger than life size--and one human mother and child play variations on the theme "I will always love you." In response to the question, "Do you love me, Mama?" asked by each little one, the mothers reply, "Yes, little one... forever and ever and always." In each instance, a parallel is drawn between the mother's love and the nurturing, protecting environment that is the animal's home. The human mother, however, says, "I love you as the stars love you, constant and bright above you, giving you joy and peace and wonder." Even very young children will know that the notion of stars loving anyone is a bit of a stretch, but will respond to the poetry of it, anyway. Tafuri's trademark watercolor- and-pencil illustrations, with every hair and feather and blade of grass meticulously stroked in, are just as lovely here as in What the Sun Sees, What the Moon Sees (1997) and show the world as the same reassuring, benevolent place. A book for quiet times, for sharing one-on-one.
