I Love You Already! by Jory John and Benji Davies

I Love You Already! by Jory John and Benji Davies (published Jan 2016)

You know how you love to re-read a favorite book because you already know the characters and they feel like old friends?  When I first read I Love You Already!, this is how I felt.  And even though it’s the second book with these characters, I actually purchased both books at the same time when the author came for a school visit.  So besides the fact that Bear and Duck feel like old friends (without coming across as cliches) and besides the fact that I love the illustrations and the paper (texture and color) that it’s printed on and besides the fact that my husband makes the best Bear and Duck voices because he makes them sound like himself and our youngest daughter when he’s reading the first book, Goodnight Already!, and besides the fact that this is a pretty long run-on sentence, I was ready to love I Love You Already!, already.  (Not to mention the fact that both books have ‘already’ in the title, a word that I’ve been known to overuse since I was a teen.)

Bear and Duck have that classic Frog and Toad relationship: neighbors and best friends and almost like siblings all rolled into one.  And, even though I compare them to the great Frog and Toad—don’t get me wrong.  Bear and Duck also have their own personalities.  Many a picture book tries to forge these friendship ties and it can be difficult to do, especially with current word count restrictions.  I admire Jory John’s ability to say so much in so few words.  And if Bear resembles my husband when our youngest is being a rhinoceros, all the better.  Good thing Bear (and my husband) are very patient beings.  

Rating: Dr. Bookworm places it on the lowest bookshelf.  (Which means it’s HIGH up on my scale because it means that little hands can grab it whenever they want to and make me read it over and over again.)  I don’t mind.  I love it even better when I hear my husband reading either Goodnight Already! or I Love You Already! to our Little Lion Bookworm while she’s sitting on his lap in the other room, complete with voices.  

Jory John and Benji Davies, please tell me that you’re working on the third Bear and Duck book.  Because you know what?  I love it already.  

Rating: Buy it or borrow it or skip it?  
Me: Buy it, buy it, buy it.  Because otherwise you’ll have overdue library fines.
Little Lion Bookworm: Medium

Ages: 4-8 years, according to the book flap.  But I think an engaged 2 or 3 year old could enjoy it as well.  And adults too!