Children's Corner: How to Hug

My daughter is a huge hugger ~sometimes to the complete shock of the recipient.  So when I saw this book on the library display, I snapped it up.  I think it's a wonderful little book that helps children think about hugging and personal space.  It gives good guidelines ("Never hug anyone who's angry.  It can take time to get over it, so just be patient." as well as "Never hug too many people at once." which has caused many piles of fallen children in my daughter's world.)  as well as understanding about sometimes, people don't like to be hugged, but they may like a hand to hold, or that you may get more than you bargained for and get a kiss too (especially if you hug my daughter!).  It also mentions that it's okay to say no to a hug, a concept that it's important that children learn early on.  While it doesn't venture into stranger danger, it opens the door for a discussion of it, if that's what you wish.

I love the warm inviting illustrations by Jana Christy too ~all the hugs are animal related in the pictures, and she has very ingenious concepts that keep a book that could be overly serious on the light and fun side.  I especially love all the examples of different kinds of hugs.  This is a great bed time read as it isn't overly long and wordy, but it's also warm and cuddly too.   I think this will be another permanent addition to our shelf.