Horn Book

Small feels grim and unloved--and the young fox fails to find comfort in Large's promise to love Small "no matter what." Small tests the declaration: "If I were a grumpy grizzly bear, would you still love me?" What about a bug? A crocodile? And what about when Large is far away? The text offers nothing new in this overcrowded genre, but the watercolors, which have a cozy, candlelit glow, are full of witty details.

ALA Booklist

Feeling ignored, young fox Small creates a mess to get the attention of Large: I'm grim and grumpy, scowls Small. And I don't think you love me at all. Large replies with a guarantee to love Small no matter what. Unconvinced, Small asks, Would you still love me if I were a grumpy grizzly bear, a squishy bug, a crocodile, and so on? Each time, Large answers with loving reassurance. The foxes are likable and charming, though an infusion of Sendakian mischief might have made Small's insecurity and Large's unconditional love seem more believable. Gliori's whimsical illustrations use warm, inviting color to invoke the same sense of emotional security as the rhyming text, and because Large and Small are never identified by gender, the book can be used to demonstrate many relationships. A story that will soothe an anxious child and open the door for conversations on the nature of love. A crowd pleaser for fans of McBratney's Guess How Much I Love You (1996). (Reviewed November 15, 1999)

Kirkus Reviews

Small, a very little fox, needs some reassurance from Large in the unconditional love department. If he is grim and grumpy, will he still be loved? " Oh, Small,' said Large, grumpy or not, I'll always love you, no matter what.' " So it goes, in a gentle rhyme, as Large parries any number of questions that for Small are very telling. What if he were to turn into a young bear, or squishy bug, or alligator? Would a mother want to hug and hold these fearsome animals? Yes, yes, answers Large. "But does love wear out? Does it break or bend? Can you fix it or patch it? Does it mend?" There is comfort in Gliori's pages, but it is a result of repetition and not the imagery; this is a quick fix, not an enduring one, but it eases Small's fears and may well do the same for children. (Picture book. 2-6)

Publishers Weekly (Fri Oct 06 00:00:00 CDT 2023)

Gliori (Tell Me Something Happy Before I Go to Sleep) here explores anxiety about the limits of a parent's love--especially whether it can survive a bout of pint-size bad behavior. With a gentle, rhyming text and illustrations that exude a snuggly warmth, she offers a reassuring, though ultimately cloying answer. As bedtime nears, a cute little fox named Small who's feeling """"grim and grumpy"""" (and whose parent, Large, is pictured chatting on the phone) acts out by upturning the living room. When Large asks what's wrong, Small begins interrogating Large (neither character's gender is specified): """"If I were a grumpy grizzly bear, would you still love me? Would you still care?"""" """"I'd always love you, no matter what,"""" responds Large. As in books like Lisa McCourt's I Love You, Stinky Face, the child ups the ante with unpleasant scenarios: what if Small were some other ostensibly uncuddly creature, like a squishy bug or a crocodile? """"No matter what"""" comes the answer again--and Gliori's warmly comic depictions of Large's abiding affections drive home the unconditionality of parental love. Unfortunately, Gliori pushes her point a bit too hard with a closing treacly analogy to the light of stars: """"We may be close, we may be far,/ but our love still surrounds us.../ wherever we are."""" Still, few authors wear their hearts on their sleeves so effectively. Ages 2-6. (Oct.)