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5.0 out of 5 stars
Making Daddies More Approachable and Human, 23 Jul 2004
This book would make a wonderful present from a 2 year old for Father's Day. Children from 2-6 should be very pleased with the book. The images and activities are fairly divided between daughters and sons, so it should be equally enjoyable for all young children. The large, pleasant water colors will be accessible for very young children. One year-olds will enjoy looking at the pictures. The book can also be used as a beginning reader around age 5. Lifting the flaps will seem like peek-a-boo for 2-3 year olds and will bring torrents of giggles.The book basically recounts lots of things that Daddies can help children with. My favorite was an illustration of a dozing Mom in a chair accompanied by the caption: "Sometimes at the end of the day, Daddy puts you to bed." The book begins by having a girl try on Daddy's shoes and a boy put on Daddy's belt. Dealing with the relative size issue is a good place to start, and by making it humorous can take some of the potential discomfort out of the size differentials between children and the Daddies. When the flap is lifted, the child is included more directly with Daddy. For example, one illustration shows a Daddy shaving while a boy looks on. The caption is "A daddy shaves." Under the flap, the boy has put some shaving cream on his own face, as well. The caption under the flap says "And is good to smell." Daddies tickle your feet, mess your hair, try to fix things (not always successfully), help you deal with deep water (and teach you how to swim), protect you from big dogs, answer questions, go to work, and put you on their shoulders so you can see better. The book creates the expectation that Daddies will do things with their children, but not that Daddies are perfect. As you can see from the example, care is taken to turn Daddy's size into an advantage for the youngster. A benefit of having a book like this is to encourage Daddies and children to do more things together. Children are often very attached to their Mommies, and some are more than a little afraid of their Daddies. This book sets up an expectation of doing things with Daddies alone sometimes. That's good. Almost all children's books features Mommies doing things with children, so this book helps balance that mental image out. After you have been reading this book for awhile, I suggest that you ask your child what things Daddies could do that she or he would like that are not listed in the book. That can help you expand your relationship in mutually rewarding ways. Keep your eyes open for fireflies!
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