From Caldecott Medalist Chris Raschka comes a sweet, simple picture book dialogue between a mother and baby, for the youngest of children.

Mama and Baby clap and play hide-and-seek and pat-a-cake. Mama and Baby . . . Mama? Where did Mama go? In a series of spreads, simple, bold illustrations show a mother on one side and a baby on the other, interacting in universally familiar ways — until Mama dips out briefly, then returns to her crying child to offer comfort again. With his usual flair, the redoubtable Chris Raschka offers a reassuring moment that will resonate with mamas and babies everywhere.

Out March 2020

MY THOUGHTS:

I received this book in exchange for my honest review.

Okay…

I’ve sat on the fence for some time with this picture book.

This is such a simple book that I didn’t think it would be enough to keep the attention of a toddler. So I went to my neighbor’s and asked them to read the book to their child. The interactions between illustrations and child was surprising. The child insisted on a re-read from everyone sitting around the table, which surmounted to four re-reads.

The child mimicked the book. Her attention was held throughout and she insisted on turning the pages herself. Her motions and chatter was endearing.

From an adult’s perspective, this book was just okay. From a child’s perspective this book was brilliant, engaging, interactive, colorful, and very sweet. Easy to understand, fun to follow and simply enthralling.

Based on what I saw, I can understand why Raschka is a Medalist. Very interesting aspect to the book is how much the child was engaged. Insightful on Raschka’s part to see into the world of the very young.

I gave this book: