Publishers Weekly
01/15/2024
Gaga, the glamorous grandmother of this book’s young narrator, revels in defying convention throughout a rollicking familial portrait by mother-daughter Susan (Reading with Babies, Toddlers & Twos, for adults) and Emma Straub (Very Good Hats). Cataloging the ways that Gaga turns things upside down when visiting her grandchild each week, the child begins broadly: “She makes lots of mistakes.” When grandmother and grandchild walk to the park, “Gaga makes up silly rules, like we can only walk backwards the whole way, or we can only walk on cracks in the sidewalk.” When the child, portrayed with light brown skin, teaches pale-skinned Gaga ballet moves, Gaga “does them all wonky.” Gaga sometimes annoys the grandchild’s parents by being generous with marsh- mallows before dinner, and filling the tub at bath time with mountains of bubbles that have to be mopped up. (“Mistakes are fun, aren’t they?” Gaga says.) As the Straubs highlight with panache the importance—and pleasure—of breaking the rules, Love (A Bed of Stars) captures Gaga’s Auntie Mame–style dash, spontaneity, and sartorial splendor, and the air of conspi- ratorial delight that she and her grandchild share. Ages 4–8. (Apr.)
From the Publisher
"As the Straubs highlight with panache the importance—and pleasure—of breaking the rules, Love captures Gaga’s Auntie Mame–style dash, spontaneity, and sartorial splendor, and the air of conspiratorial delight that she and her grandchild share. " —Publishers Weekly
"This is a gently comical tribute to warm, deeply loving grandmother-grandchild relationships. The dynamic pencil, watercolor, and gouache illustrations are as free-wheeling and entertaining as gray-haired Gaga, who is pale-skinned; the protagonists and the parents are brown-skinned. " —Kirkus
"Pencil, watercolor, and gouache in Love’s recognizable style add an extra dose of magic to the pair’s fanciful days. With bright bursts of color and extravagant scenes, the reader is whisked away into their playful world from the very first page. " —The Horn Book Magazine
"Award-winning illustrator Jessica Love uses vivid sweeps of color and expressive linework in dynamic compositions, adding cleverly observed details, to bring this sprightly character and her quirky antics to something decidedly larger-than-life. Young readers will revel in the carefree silliness of these shared “mistake days.” —Booklist
Kirkus Reviews
2024-01-20
Grandma’s so-called errors are enough to drive anyone gaga—but in the best possible way.
On Saturdays, when Gaga visits her 4-year-old grandchild—who narrates the story—she “makes lots of mistakes.” Sometimes she wears her fuzzy slippers on her ears. Or she and her grandchild switch their eyeglasses so neither of them can see a thing. Or she substitutes a chocolate bar for chewing gum, rationalizing, “Isn’t that gum? You can chew it.” Gaga sees nothing wrong in reading an upside-down book to the child. On treks to the park, the pair walk backward. Occasionally, the protagonist’s parents disapprove of Gaga’s ideas, such as feeding their child marshmallows before dinner or filling the tub to overflowing with soap bubbles. But grandchild and Gaga agree that “mistakes are fun, aren’t they?” This is a gently comical tribute to warm, deeply loving grandmother-grandchild relationships. Gaga clearly understands that adults can easily form close bonds with kids if they use humor, behave in a childlike manner themselves, and appreciate a youngster’s sense of wonder and absurdity. The message here is that more grown-ups should make the “mistake” of loosening up a bit. The dynamic pencil, watercolor, and gouache illustrations are as free-wheeling and entertaining as gray-haired Gaga, who is pale-skinned; the protagonists and the parents are brown-skinned.
Who wouldn’t love spending time with a memorable grandmother like this? (Picture book. 4-7)
