Miss You Like Crazy

PreS-Gr 1—Mother Squirrel is getting ready for work when small Walnut announces that he would like to stay home, asking plaintively, "Don't you miss me all day?" His mom replies, "Only like crazy." The two make up an imaginary adventure, with Mom and Walnut spending the day at her office, at sea, and in the jungle until Mom has to leave. The tone and dialogue seek to reassure children that they are loved and that Mom will always be there at the end of the day. Squirrel Mom is kindly firm that she must work to pay the rent and buy him things he likes but that she is also good at what she does, which is an affirming message for working mothers. Also reassuring, but slightly twee or quaint, are the illustrations. The colors are muted, and the scenes are somewhat static. The beginning of the imaginary journey is a little confusing. Mom states, "I wish I could fold you up and pack you in my briefcase." The following sentence reads, "Walnut slipped into a side pocket and hid." However, as the illustrations continue in the same style and colors, with little to show an office environment, it takes a while to realize that Walnut pretends to slip into a make-believe briefcase—which assumes that children know what a briefcase is (luckily illustrated) and that it has side pockets. Once past this page, it becomes clearer that mother and son are inventing a story. An additional purchase.—Michelle Anderson, Tauranga City Libraries, New Zealand