Simona CiraoloBesprekingen

129

This book had such nice reviews that I was really excited about it. Unfortunately I could not understand the hype.
Maybe something was lost in translation.

I generally like children stories to teach valuable lessons and good principles and I did not feel this in this book.
Cleaning and respecting other people space is associated with the bad parents who don’t want to hug. It almost feels it was written by a kid who does not want to clean the room.
Felipe gets to know a balloon and it ends in an accident - for obvious reasons a cactus cannot hug a ballon. Everyone blames the cactus, the newspaper claims “cactus attacks balloon, balloon hospitalized, shame for the family”. Again, I miss the moral of this event.
After the accident Felipe runs away (I couldn’t think about any better solution to solving a problem), he searches for other families, gets rejected several times until he founds the perfect friend - a stone.

This book it’s not teaching that it’s ok to be different, does not explain that we should talk about our feelings, validates jumping into conclusions and, above all this, offers running away as a solution to our problems.

I understand this is written as a kid would view the world, and this is why I’ve adjusted to 2 stars. However, part of our role as a parent should be teaching our kids to deal with feelings and emotions. Stories are an amazing tool to do that but I just can’t see myself using this one.

A little summer-loving boy is horrified when his sister tells him summer won't last - fall and winter are coming. But the boy finds something to love about each season.

Gorgeous ice cream cone endpapers and original choices on perspective make this a book with great visual interest; I especially like how the first and last spreads have the same perspective (a bird's eye view of a swimming pool and the snowy ground, respectively).

See also: A Day So Gray by Marie Lamba

I adored this picture book.

The plot is a little girl who's certain her teenaged sister has been replaced by an imposter because so much about her has changed. (So an imposter is the only explanation, obviously).

The style and detail of the illustrations is really what makes this book special, although the writing is fantastic as well. But please, if you're planning to read this book, take a few more moments to look at the details Ciraolo has added to the book -- the posters on the walls, the cat's facial expressions, it all adds to the experience.

I loved so much about this book and I feel like it's a really valuable one to add to my collection.

It is about a little cactus, and all he wants is a HUG! In the end, a rock comes and they hug without getting hurt. A great addition to my southwest story box.

Felipe the young cactus wants really big hug from someone, but his family is not the touchy-feely kind. One day, Felipe sets off on his own to find a friend, and just maybe, that long awaited hug.
6 books

A really heartwarming book. The fact that there are no words on the pages showing the memories is moving. The illustration told the story. I would have liked more memories or something else because it ended too soon, but otherwise this is a really special book. It almost feels like older people would connect with it more than children would.

Felipe's very proper cactus family didn't believe in invading other people's personal space, so the prickly young plant's desire for a hug went unfulfilled. His initial attempt at friendship with a delicate yellow balloon proved disastrous, and our cactus hero ended up leaving home and living very much alone. Until the day, that is, that he met someone else who also longed for a hug...

A sweet picture-book about wanting to make connections, and feeling a little awkward about it at first, Hug Me was author/artist Simona Ciraolo's debut. This is the second book, following upon the lovely The Lines on Nana's Face, that I have picked up by Ciraolo, and although I did find it charming, it wasn't quite the equal of that later title. Still, the ending is heartwarming, and the artwork quirky and appealing, so I would definitely attempt a third book from this artist. The publisher, London-based Flying Eye Books, seems to produce books that are quite interesting and engaging, from a design/graphic layout perspective. Recommended to anyone looking for picture-books that address themes of loneliness, social interaction and friendship.

A young girl is excited to celebrate her grandmother's birthday in this lovely picture-book, but worries that her beloved Nana isn't happy. Nana explains that the lines on her face might make it look that way, but in truth, those wrinkles each contain an important memory. In response to her granddaughter's questions about specific wrinkles, Nana shares some of the highlights of her life, concluding with one very special memory - the day she met her granddaughter!

With a heartwarming exploration of the loving bond between a grandparent and grandchild, and beautiful artwork that captures the changing emotional register of all of Nana's memories, The Lines on Nana's Face is an immensely accomplished picture-book from author/artist Simona Ciraolo. I appreciated the way that Ciraolo constructs her story, with her young narrator's initial misunderstanding of her Nana's facial expression giving way to a better understanding, once she learns a little more about her life, as I think it is fairly common for young children to be a little frightened and/or intimidated by the appearance of elderly people. Highly recommended to anyone looking for children's stories about young children and their grandparents, or about young people interacting with the elderly in general.

This is the story of a little cactus who wants someone to hug him. Felipe meets lots of acquaintances on his journey to find just the right friend, but in the end, he finds just the right friend to give him lots of hugs. The artwork is very minimalistic - not a lot of stimulation on each page - this is perfect for some kids who might be easily distracted from the story. The drawings are simplistic, but are good representations of the text. I will definitely use this in my classroom.

Family doesn't always understand us.

End pages are great (1/2 star for Felipe reading Anne of Green Gables, and camping with his new-found best friend and rock, Canilla.

Young cactus craves demonstrative displays of affection but his family are not the "touchy feely" kind.