No Bows

Duke, Shirley Smith. 2006. No Bows! Illustrated by Jenny Mattheson.

A few days ago when I was reviewing Say Hello, I mentioned that sometimes less was more. (Cat is another recent example.) That just a few well-chosen words can tell a good--sometimes even great--story. (Now that I think about it Orange Pear Apple Bear is another good example. I think I really like simple.)

No Bows is a great book. A really great book. And I'm not just saying that. Occasionally I come across a picture book hero or heroine that is me. There's just an instant click, a connection. I see myself in that character, in that book. Such is the case with No Bows.

In just a few words, our young heroine is fully-fleshed, fully developed. And she's fun. She's just a delight.

Here's a sample of the text:

no bows...
BRAIDS

no pink...
PURPLE

no puppy...
LIZARD

You get the idea. She's an individual. She's content, happy, delighted to be just who she is. And her parents love her just as she is.

The book is so simple, so inviting, that it just is begging to be an interactive "read." It's predictable in that even if one can't technically read the words on his/her own, the pictures are there to help out, give a clue as to what word comes next.

Anyway, I love the text. I love the concept. I love the illustrations. (So bright. So happy. So right.) If I had read this as a child, there is not a doubt in my mind that it would have been an again-again book. A book that I would have insisted time and time and time and time again be read aloud.