Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
A playful young elephant wearing star-covered trousers reflects on his beloved mother in this meandering tribute. "I've known my mama for a long time. For my whole life, actually," the text begins; the narrator goes on to offer a child's-eye view of all the ways he spends time with her. They play cars ("I like that, as long as she tidies them up afterwards"), "water" plants (the small elephant pees into his), and sometimes clash ("My mama is never angry with me... But when she is, she's really ANGRY!"). Set mostly against simple white backgrounds, van Haeringen's spare drawings have a retro quality, emphasized by Mama's colorful caftan and long red necklace. The elephant child's earnest, oblivious commentary has a sweet humor that may play more to adults than to kids--"I'm always the one in charge," he declares--but van Haeringen's scenes make it clear: Mama is the architect of this elephant's world. Ages 2--5. (Mar.)
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Review by School Library Journal Review
PreS-Gr 1--A young, highly anthropomorphized male elephant narrates this picture book about his special relationship with his mama. The duo takes center stage via the illustrations with their bright clothing against an opaque cream background. The little elephant is shirtless and wears pants with bright orange stars all over them and his mama is resplendent in a long, flowing dress with a colorful flower print and a red beaded necklace. The little one tells us how the pair like to do things together such as play cars and do the shopping. Although sometimes his mama gets mad at him, and it takes forever for her lectures to end. Children will be greatly amused at one scene where he "waters" the plants by peeing on them. At bedtime, Mama shakes those orange stars off his pants which float in the air above his bed. VERDICT Translated from Dutch, this title would be an easy contender for a storytime read-aloud on mother-son relationships.--Amy Nolan, St. Joseph Public Library, MI
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Review by Horn Book Review
Told from the baby's point of view ("I've known my mama for a long time"), this playful offering explores, through two elephant characters, the strong emotional bond between parent and child. They play together; they run errands together; and sometimes Mama gets "really ANGRY" when her baby gets into mischief ("altering" her dress with scissors, or watering houseplants by urinating on them). Still, our narrator knows, without having to be told, of Mama's unconditional love. Nearly every spread is filled with the mother, stocky and sturdy, as she plays with her child, with no background details to distract from their interactions. Throughout, the baby wears white pants adorned with orange stars; at bedtime, Mama "shakes the stars off my pants," and the baby elephant stares in wonder at the orange stars floating above, the same ones that adorn the opening and closing endpapers. Julie Danielson May/June 2020 p.112(c) Copyright 2020. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
An elephant calf gives readers his imaginative perspective on life with Mama. Van Haeringen's tongue is firmly in cheek here. The opening spread shows a very pregnant, upright mama elephant wearing a white dress with colorful designs; the text reads: "I've known my mama for a long time. / For my whole life, actually." A page turn later, the calf, sporting white pants covered in large orange stars, is old enough to be playing with toy cars with Mama, explaining that it's good fun as long as she helps clean up. And so the book continues, readers never sure where the page turn will lead them: to the market, the swings, mountain climbing (up Mama's not inconsiderable bulk). Readers will enjoy the perspective of the calf, but even more, they'll like to be in on jokes the earnest narrator misses: The child likes "watering the plants" (a little urination joke) but notices that "when I do, it always starts to rain"--Mama stands behind with a watering can. Still, the book as a whole suffers from the lack of a solid narrative arc. Though the simple compositions on generous white space keep the focus on the relationship, it's not quite enough to make up for the basic absence of a plot, though the last page comes close: "At bedtime, my mama shakes the stars off my pants." A sweet but plotless mother-child interlude. (Picture book. 2-5) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
