The Very Best Hug

by Smriti Prasadam-Halls, Alison Brown (Illustrator)

Overview

A delightful picture book about the power of hugs, from the mega-bestselling creators of I Love You Night and Day, You Make Me Happy and I'll Never Let You Go.

Have you ever wondered who gives the very BEST hug?

The kind that's warm and cozy and snug?

Extra squeezy, but never too tight,

the kind that fits you COMPLETELY right?

From bear hugs to koala cuddles, hippo huddles to walrus wiggles, penguin pecks to porcupine prickles, there are a LOT of hugs to choose from.

But the perfect hug may not be far-in fact, it might be right where you are!

Who gives the best hugs? Have you guessed? It's the ones at home, who love you the best!

Full of silly and snuggly animal cuddles, this irresistible story from the bestselling creators Smriti Prasadam-Halls and Alison Brown is perfect for sharing and reading aloud.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781547612369
Publisher:	Bloomsbury USA
Publication date:	01/24/2023
Pages:	32
Product dimensions:	9.70(w) x 10.90(h) x 0.20(d)
Age Range:	3 Months to 5 Years

About the Author

Smriti Prasadam-Halls has been a children's writer and editor for more than ten years and has written several children's books, including the bestselling Jingle Jangle Jungle, illustrated by Axel Scheffler. Smriti lives in Richmond-upon-Thames.

www.smriti.co.uk

Alison Brown studied Fine Art at Liverpool and then became a graphic designer. She has been illustrating for the past six years, and has illustrated many much-loved books including You Make Me Happy and the Little Owl series by Debi Gliori. Alison was brought up in Bangor, Northern Ireland, but she now lives in Leeds.

Editorial Reviews

2022-10-26
A child in search of the best hugger takes a bedtime tour of the world’s most unusual embraces.

In the opening pages of this rhyming picture book, an unnamed narrator asks a curly-haired, tan-skinned child who they think gives the best hugs. At the narrator’s behest, the protagonist spends their bedtime routine receiving affection from a wacky cast of creatures, ranging from meerkats to porcupines to narwhals. These animals have a variety of body types, but even those with a lack of limbs still express their love; the seahorse, for example, gives the child a “smooch” right before bathtime, and a grinning cobra offers the child a “clinch,” wrapping itself around their leg. Although many of the animals prove to be more prickly than cozy—the narrator points out, for example, the sharpness of bird beaks and porcupine quills—even the snuggliest koalas and bears cannot compare to the best hug of all: a parent’s embrace right before bedtime. The use of second-person address combined with the protagonist’s beautifully illustrated facial expressions and the buoyant, clever lines of verse render this book a hilarious and whimsical ride sure to delight both children and the adults who read to them. The pictures and text work together to create a clear narrative arc for the protagonist, and though the ending is a bit predictable, it’s nevertheless a wonderful payoff. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

A delightfully silly celebration of familial love. (Picture book. 3-6)

Kirkus Reviews

With nearly endless variations, Prasadam-Halls has made hugging into a zoo of opportunity for passing the love around.” —School Library Journal

“Both tender and comic. . .[with] an eminently huggable ending.” —Publishers Weekly

“. . . beautifully illustrated facial expressions and the buoyant, clever lines of verse render this book a hilarious and whimsical ride sure to delight both children and the adults who read to them. . . A delightfully silly celebration of familial love.” —Kirkus Reviews

“The roly-poly pair are delightfully expressive and adorable, and the sentiments expressed are those caregivers appreciate and celebrate in their children.” —Kirkus Reviews, on YOU MAKE ME HAPPY

“The last lines, echoing the premise of the whole book, will be reassuring to most. . . . Sweet.” —Kirkus Reviews, on I'LL NEVER LET YOU GO

“Another sweet book bearing a message of unconditional love and support. . . . The gender-neutral animal pairs could easily represent a number of close relationships, from parent and child to grandparent and grandchild to an older and younger sibling. . . . A perfect choice for one-on-one sharing and a comforting bedtime story.” —School Library Journal, on I'LL NEVER LET YOU GO

“Prasadam-Halls's rhymed couplets have a pleasing lilt. . . . The gender-neutral, cross-species portrait of affection gives the book the potential for broad appeal—the animals' relationship could easily be between a single or adoptive parent and his or her child, or also between two close friends.” —Publishers Weekly, on I LOVE YOU NIGHT AND DAY

“Brown's soft, full-spread artwork nicely matches Prasadam-Halls's brief rhyming verse. . . . This gentle, reassuring story is a calming tale just right for family or group sharing.” —School Library Journal, on I LOVE YOU NIGHT AND DAY

“Tender and comic . . . eminently huggable” —Publishers Weekly

From the Publisher