Horn Book (Sun Aug 01 00:00:00 CDT 2010)

Young zebra Ollie bakes banana bread and goes to the park with his dad; with his mom he plays with butterflies and hides in the grass. These simple shared activities effectively speak to the love between Ollie and his parents. The books' small trim size and pleasing rhymes combined with their spare, soft-hued ink illustrations give the stories an intimate feel.

Kirkus Reviews

Ollie B., a gray-and-white striped creature with long ears and floppy legs, tells readers just how he and his mom spend time together. "We look / and talk, / we giggle / and walk. // We see a duck and a dragonfly. // We see orange fish swimming by." The utter simplicity of the text suits this small celebration to the youngest listeners, but there is some sweet sophistication in the illustrations. The aforementioned duck is a topiary waterfowl; the orange of the fish swimming by is echoed in Mom's polka-dot bag and the curves of their smiles. It's an undemanding little gift book that speaks simply. A companion, I Love My Dad (ISBN: 978-1-4169-8319-4; April 2010), treats Ollie's relationship with his dad with a similarly light touch. (Picture book. 2-5)

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

Here's a selection of books celebrating all that moms do for their children—and vice versa.

<REVIEW PUBLISHER=""Reed Business Information-US"" RELEASEDATE=""03/22/2010"" LANGUAGE=""EN"" SECRIGHTS=""YES"" PUBLICATION=""Publishers Weekly"" PUBDATE=""03/22/2010"" VOLUME=""257"" ISSUE=""12"" PAGE=""68"" SECTION=""Reviews"" SUBSECTION=""Children's Books"" CONTENTTYPE=""Review"" AUTHNAME=""Staff"">I Love My MomAnna Walker. Simon & Schuster, $9.99 (32p) ISBN 978-1-4169-8318-7

In this small-format book, which follows <EMPHASIS TYPE=""ITALIC"">I Love Christmas (2009), Ollie, a zebra who resembles a homemade stuffed animal, shares the details of what he and his mother do together (“We love to play with the butterflies./ We love to hide in disguise”) and why he loves her. After a day's worth of gentle adventures, they rest and Ollie's mom gives him a “special treat.” But it's the kiss good night that Ollie loves best. Never saccharine, Walker's understated ink illustrations suggest a cozy and whimsical miniature world. Ages 2–6. <EMPHASIS TYPE=""ITALIC"">(Mar.)