Ed Allen (text), Simon Williams (illus), Dear Mum, I Love You, Scholastic, 1 April 2015, $16-99 (hbk), 24pp., ISBN 978 1 74362 6320
Celebrating the bond between mothers and their children, this is a happy picture book full of energy and entertainment. It consists of a series of letters written by various baby animals to their mums to say how much they love them and why. Each letter is affectionate, clever and funny using puns, idioms and changes in font to individualise the message. The letters are presented in a lift-the-flap and open the envelope style which introduces an element of suspense and surprise to the reading experience. A double page spread is devoted to each mother and child with Simon Williams’ colourful and striking illustrations showing each pair having fun together in their natural environment. The animals are full of life and character with their individuality captured in their lively expressions which have a cartoon quality about them.
Both text and illustrations work well together to capture the young readers’ attention and children between the ages of 4 and 10 will enjoy the interactive aspect of this text as well as all the ideas it will give them for writing cards, messages and letters to their own mothers. The last page contains a special sheet of blank paper so that the child reader can engage with the book by writing a personal letter to mum. Inside the front cover there is also a heart-shaped space for the readers to place a picture of themselves with their own mum.
There is plenty to do in this picture book to make it a personal gift from the child to the parent or to read about all the reasons mothers are important in our lives.
reviewed by Grace Nolan