KISS, KISS
by Jennifer Couëlle ; illustrated by Jacques Laplante ; translated by Karen Simon
A rhyming celebration of kisses of all kinds.
Kisses can do so much: from sending love and healing boo-boos to saying hello and goodbye and good morning and good night. And then there are the kinds of kisses: wet ones, big ones, pecks, slurpy ones, and the ones that leave lipstick marks behind. “When grownups kiss it may look sappy. / Well, they’re in love—and very happy.” While Couëlle’s verse changes rhythm and rhyming pattern on a whim (and not all of it rhymes), this matches the flighty topic of love and kisses (and also may reflect the fact that this is a translation of Le bisou from the French). And Laplante’s simple illustrations, which appear to be digital, are similarly whimsical, more rough sketches with color that often extends beyond its lines. A full range of relationships are represented here—parents, grandparents, couples, friends are all happily smooching. And people are not the only kissers in these pictures: fish and birds kiss, and a baby shares kisses with a dog.
“Because a day without kissing / has something missing.” (Picture book. 2-6)