WE GO TOGETHER!
by Todd Dunn ; illustrated by Miki Sakamoto
In rhyming couplets and jaunty cartoons, this celebration of maternal love depicts images of a variety of matching pairs.
The verse presents a string of similes—one line per page—and ranges from the everyday (“We go together like socks and shoes”) to the fantastical (“We go together like fire and dragon”). The meter mostly works, but there is a forced syllable or two in the mix. Sakamoto’s acrylic, gouache and pencil art grounds the text in a playful, kid-friendly world and uses a cast of multicultural people and lively animals. The last spread, featuring a Caucasian mother hugging her child of indeterminate gender opposite hearts, unfortunately steers the whole project into the cloying with the following line: “We go together, that’s what we do, because you love me and…I love you!”
While metaphor and simile are difficult for toddlers to grasp, the text is buoyant enough, and illustrations give youngsters plenty to admire and recognize. (Board book. 2-4)