Module 1 - Love You Forever

Module 1 - Love You Forever

Summary

A mother holds her baby son and sings softly.

“I’ll love you forever

I’ll like you for always

As long as I’m living

My baby you’ll be”

As the child grows she continues to hold the son and sing even through every stage of life. Then the mother becomes to old a frail to hold and rock her grown son so the son starts holding and rocking the mother.

Reference of Book

Munsch, R. (1986). Love you forever. Richmond Hill, ON, Canada. Firefly Books Ltd.

Impressions

This is a very cute book with great illustrations. This book is how a mother feels about her child. The book shows the unconditional love even when the child grows up and moves away. Young children might not understand the significance of the end of the story when the child does the rocking and singing.

Professional Review

This newest story by Robert Munsch differs from those in his previous books by using a quieter and more introspective approach. Munsch shows the love a mother has for her son from the time of his birth to adulthood.

The words in Munsch's stories are always simple, and this book is no exception. He has a keen ear for words and sounds that appeal to children, catch their attention, and can be exaggerated in the telling. In Love You Forever, Munsch uses the words "crazy" and "zoo" to that effect. The use of the word "crawl" is another example. Munsch has the mother crawl across the floor to her son's bed to see if he is asleep. We laugh at the image, but the use of these words adds an element of slapstick that conflicts with the theme.

Munsch uses the same sentence pattern throughout the story, using repetition of words to accentuate each stage of development. Repetition of a song is also used. The song is sung six times by the mother and twice by the son. Since no accompaniment has been included, storytellers will be able to compose a tune that will suit their own styles of storytelling. With the use of a song, Munsch plays on the sentiments of his listeners to provoke a reaction that he will no doubt receive. A good supply of Kleenex tissues will be needed.

In trying to show the enduring nature of a parent's love and how that same love is transmitted from generation to generation, Munsch has to show the child from birth to adulthood. This time span causes problems. As the child grows older, he is still being rocked at night by his mother when he is asleep. A situation that becomes sillier as both mother and child grow older. Because much of the story centres on the child when he is older, it is also apparent that this is not a picture book for a younger audience, although the cover gives that impression.

Perhaps this story should not be in picture-book format. Some illustrations emphasize the ridiculousness of the story. It is one thing to imagine a frail old mother rocking her big, tall son, but another to see it illustrated. The illustrator has also taken license. Once the son has moved away from home, the illustrator shows an older woman climbing a ladder to the second floor of a house opening a window, and, finally, rocking a grown man. This lacks credibility and, while reminiscent of Munsch's previous books, does not fit here.

Love You Forever is sentimentality at its worst. This is not a children's story, but one that will appeal to adults who have experienced a feeling of loss, as their children grow older. Munsch should go back to what he does best.

Gagnon, A. (1987). Book Review, CM Archive, A Reviewing Journal of Canadian Materials for Young People. 15 (2) Retrieved from http://www.umanitoba.ca/cm/cmarchive/vol15no2/loveyouforever.html

If you would like a book that can make you laugh and cry at the same time and share with your children for years to come then you really should pick up a copy of “Love You Forever” by Robert N. Munsch. As a mother sings a bedtime song to her sleeping baby the book takes you through the different stages of that same baby growing to adulthood and having their own baby.

I firmly believe that any adult with children will appreciate the lighter side of “Love You Forever” right along with the sentimental attachment mothers have to their children no matter what. As a mother of four adult children and now six grandchildren all of which are not currently nearby I think I went through a half a box of Kleenex while reading this touching children’s book – I remember when….

“Love You Forever” was voted #6 on a list of 100 children’s books in 2000 by the National Education Association and it’s not surprising as it’s hard to believe anyone reading this simple story will not be touched. I think this book would be an excellent gift for grandparents, Mothers Day or Father’s Day, or as a baby shower gift.

Draper, F. (2011) Review of Love You Forever by Robert Munsch. Examiner.com.  Retrieved August 30, 2015, from http://www.examiner.com/article/review-of-love-you-forever-by-robert-munsch      

Library Uses 

This book would be good for story time for a mom and child group. The children would love the receptive text and the moms would love the emotions that the book creates. This book could be read for mothers or father's day or at a nursing home.