BE A BABY

This original lyrical homage to a baby offers metaphorical images for each kind of mood or action an infant might experience in her very young life. Being a baby encompasses the happy cooing of a bird, the playfulness of a tub of pudding or a monkey’s hunger satisfied with bananas. Playfulness and wonder lead to fatigue, inevitable tears and to the eventual peacefulness of sleep. A mother’s understanding voice tells her little one to “Be a moonbeam, Baby. / Be everything you are. / And I’ll toss you to the sky top / to meet the northern star. / Or be a baby, Baby, / and I’ll bundle you up tight. / And I’ll rock you in my arms / until the night turns light.” Gouache paintings in soft, muted blues, browns and greens provide background settings for a pink-skinned baby girl with wide curious eyes. The gentle rhyming text and the message it conveys is as much for new moms as for babies discovering themselves and the world around them. Multiple read alouds will surely be welcomed. (Picture book. 6-18 months)