LOVE IS A HANDFUL OF HONEY

A little bear’s day is filled with love—big, small, buzzing, wet, and sweet. Andreae points out that love can cover a much wider range of experiences than simple romantic notions, and may not even involve another person: “Love is a feeling of laughing out loud,” or, more insipidly, “Love is a rainbow that bursts through the sky when the sun begins shining again.” Where there is a connection to another person or creature, “Love is when somebody quietly listens to everything you’ve got to say.” Making friends with bees, slurping handfuls of honey, and bursting to share the day’s adventures with family at bathtime are some of the more original expressions of feeling that ring true. Cabban’s illustrations show the little bear’s world as a secure, happy place—just the kind of home where love abounds. (Picture book. 3-7)