Wonderful pictures and prose that would be a delight to read to a child, or grandchild! This one is a keeper for my granddaughters. ( )

I know You Anywhere, My Love is a great poetry book. I love how the entire book is one long poem, rather than a set of different poems. The language of this book is specifically why I enjoyed reading it the most. The poem used several alliteration and rhyming words throughout the story. For example, the author writes, “If you were a bear cub, I’d know by your nose, Ringtail raccoon? Your clever tiptoes.” The way Nancy Tillman describes different attributes of animals, and then rhythms with other animals’ characteristics, is genius. This is very engaging to readers of all ages. Also, the illustrations of the book are quite interesting. Each page has a different illustration of an animal and some pages include a human being affectionate with the animal. What I loved specifically was the cover of the book, which includes a young girl kissing a giraffe. These illustrations are very realistic, making them look almost as if they were photographed. Overall, this poetry children’s book was outstanding, as if gives young readers a message that they are always loved by someone. ( )

I really enjoyed this book because of the language, point of view and the theme that it instills. I loved the language because it had a simplicity to it that was easy to understand but at the same time used descriptive words that are easy for younger readers to understand. For example the author writes "I'd know you by your whiskery kisses." This uses kid friendly words to describe the animal and the types of kisses that are given. I liked the point of view in this book as well. It is written in first person from a parents perspective, more specifically a mother's perspective in my opinion. The author used kind and gentle words that you find soothing when a mother says them. For example she writes "My eyes and my ears and my arms always know... from the top of your head to your tiniest toe." The theme of the story is that no matter what a child looks like or decides they want to be, a parent will always know that is their child and they will love them. This is also the big idea of the story. ( )

Presented in rhyming verse, the text in this reassurance tale from Nancy Tillman, who is perhaps best known for her picture-book On the Night You Were Born, is a record of a mother's ability to always recognize her child, no matter what disguise he employs, or what shape he assumes. It begins: "There are things about you quite unlike any other... / things always known by your father or mother. / So if you decide to be different one day, / no worries... I'd know you anyway," and continues from there, following the child through many animal guises.

I've been curious about Nancy Tillman's work for a while, but it was only when a friend asked me to compare I'd Know You Anywhere, My Love to Sam McBratney's Guess How Much I Love You (another reassurance tale), that I finally got around to investigating. Unfortunately, I just wasn't that impressed. The idea here is rather similar to that found in Margaret Wise Brown's classic, The Runaway Bunny - i.e.: that the parent will always find and know the child - but the text here is often rather clunky, and the artwork, created digitally I believe, is an odd mix of realistic and fantastic. Altogether, this title simply didn't work well for me. Perhaps some of the others by this author are superior? ( )

Beautiful illustrations but a text that's pure saccharine. ( )