A Picture Book a Day for a Year: Day 237

Dynamic Duo: Book 1

Picture Book:  I Love Hugs

Editor: Tasha Percy

Designer: Natalie Goodwin

Summary: ”We all love hugs, and lots of animals love hugs too!” begins this book which is full of photographs of and text about hugging animals. Also, there are a few interesting facts about each type of animal. My favorite photograph is the orangutan group hug. At the end you’ll see listed “3 Good Reasons for Hugging.”

Hanna’s Comments: Tomorrow look for another book in this PBT Dynamic Duo about hugs. Two important notes about this book: My best guess is that Scholastic has recently repackaged this book. I just purchased it from them, but what I found on Amazon seems to be the same book with a different cover. The photograph of 2 raccoons on the cover of the older book is inside this newer version. There is no author listed here so use the publisher name for a search if the editor’s name doesn’t work. Also, on Amazon there is a board book for toddlers with the same name by Lara Jones. I suspect I would recommend it, but my my local library system does not have it.

Publisher & Date of Publication: QEB/Scholastic, 2014

Age & Grade Appropriateness: 5 and up, K and up

# of Pages: 32

Available in Spanish? Not at present

Formats other than Book: None at present, but Youtube.com has some videos of hugging animals that you might want to use for supplemental material.

PBT Category: Fresh off the Press

PBT Topics this Book Connects with: affection, animals, anxiety/worry, babies/children, belonging, blessings, bonds/connections, caring/tending, comfort, communication, dependence/interdependence, emotions/feelings, encouragement, family, insecurity, love, nurturing, reassurance

Scripture Connections: Who teaches us more than the beasts of the earth? (Job 35:11); the Lord is good to all, and his mercy is over all he has made. (Psalm 145:9)

Idea(s) for Application: Children need lots of opportunities in their faith families to talk about all the various aspects of loving. A lesson on how some animals, mammals in particular, love each other would be enjoyed by kids of all ages. Be sure to remind them that our creator God designed those animals to be affectionate, interdependent, and loving creatures. Encourage them to think of ways animals might teach human beings how to love better.