Review: So Much! by Trish Cooke How to Show Love without Cliche'

So Much! by Trish Cooke by Trish Cooke
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

There is soooo much to say about this book!

So Much! 

By Trish Cooke

1994

Candlewick Press

Ages 3 and up

Everybody want to squeeze the baby. Everybody wants to kiss the baby! Everybody loves the baby….SO MUCH!

    

“Masterfully captures the closeness of the family and the wonder of the baby…A celebration of warm and loving African-American family.”  Kirkus Reviews.

Critically Acclaimed Winner of:

Smarties Book Prize

The Kurt Maschler Award

The WHS Smith and She Magazine Awards.

100 Best Children’s Book of 2016 by Time Out.

    Trish Cooke is a British playwright, actress, television presenter, scriptwriter and children's author who might be best known for being a presenter on the children's series Playdays. She also wrote under the pseudonym Roselia John Baptiste

        Review

What I loved: 

    I'm going to say the quiet part outloud on this one.  I love the choice to wrap this story around a Black family, specifically a  little Black baby boy.  

    Black boys get it so rough in this world.   Black men feel that the only way they can receive  love is to be "respected", and many black men have grown up learning that the only way they can gain respect is to be the hardest, roughest, meanest, toughest richest man in the room.  I love that this story paints a different picture.

           Everyone loves this little black baby boy.  He is shown just as much affection by his uncles and male cousins, as by his mother, grandmothers, and aunt.  He is kissed, snuggled, read to, played with, danced around and generally enjoyed by the entire family.  There is no doubt that everyone loves this baby.

   

     The twist at the end was the perfect cherry on the top of this cake of family affection.  The entire family has gathered to show, not just love for the cute child, but also adoration for his  father, a grown black man who has clearly been at work all day, because it's his birthday.  They are celebrating his birth, his life, and his presence while he is still alive to enjoy it.

      His wife has made him a meal.  You can't tell if the uncle and aunt are the father's brother and sister or his in-laws.  You can't tell which of the older women is the father's mother, because they all love him so much!  The family wraps around the father and shows him just as much love as they've shown his son.

      We all know that families are not simple.  There are complications and complexities that can make or break a family dynamic.  But in just this two short panels we see a family coming together to celebrate a man just for being present.  How this story changes the narrative of black boys, unconditional love, and masculine energy being able to receive affection will effect his son's future, or, more profoundly, it will change the perspective of everyone reading this story.  Black kids, kids, all kids, male and female, everyone needs love. 

    What I liked:

         This story met all the picture book story beats in a clever and creative way.  The repetitive sentences make listening to  the book fun for young readers, but also allows for the adult reader to have fun telling it.  

    Each character has a unique way of expressing love and happiness at seeing the baby.  This allows adult readers to find different ways to voice the characters thus making the book a bit of a performance.  

    What I'd change:

    The language of the book was very familiar to me.   I enjoyed reading the story aloud.  However my husband, who is white, felt uncomfortable attempting the cultural twang.  He felt as though he were being culturally insensitive just reading the words of the book and felt like it wasn't something he or other white parents would/should attempt to read the story in that way.  Or else they risk appearing like they are parodying black people or making fun of black families to entertain their children.  I want families of all ethnic and racial backgrounds to bond over this story - and perhaps develop feelings of empathy for people they have learned to feel hard towards, perhaps unintentionally in some cases.  But I see my husband's point, so I mention it here.  

    Also, in other reviews of this book, the grandmother's threatening to "eat the baby" were taking in the wrong way.  I've had adults threaten to "eat me up because she's so cute". So this didn't bother me.  But even my mother wished they'd chosen different language, because times have changed and my daughter didn't understand.  

    Conclusion:

    This book is an excellent book for showing the pure love a family.  It has excellent illustrations that show black boys and black men need and deserve to be loved.  The language is very black, which may limit it's audience.  But it's a beautiful story with a beautiful message that everyone could learn from.   

        If you like this book please show Trishe Cook  and illustrator Helen Oxenbury some love by checking So Much! out from your local library or purchase it your favorite bookstore.

     Amazon.  

If you enjoyed this review please subscribe to leave a comment here, or leave a comment on BlueSky!  I'm @PB&JellyPhish and I'd love to hear from you.  

    I'm Porsche B. Yeary and 

I'll see you on the next page!

Recommendations!

If you liked this story you might also enjoy

Full, Full, Full of Love by Trish Cooke

The Grandpa Tree by Trish Cooke and Sharon Wilson

The Three Little Wolves and Big Bad Pig by Eugene Trivizas and Helen Oxenbury  

Monkey and Me by Emily Gravett

A Visitor for Bear by Bonny Becker

Savvy by Ingrid Law

The Willoughbys by Lois Lowry

        

View all my reviews

Using Dialogue to Build Character the The Lion's Share by Matthew McElligott

The Lion's Share by Matthew McElligott
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The Lion’s Share: A Tale of Halving Cake and Eating it, too

By Mathew McElligott

Walker& Company

2009

1^st - 3^rd Grades

When a very small ant is invited to the lion’s dinner party, she knows to be on her best behavior.  It is truly an honor to dine with the king of the jungle!

But the other partygoers don’t share her good manners.  The greedy guests gobble up dessert, leaving nothing but a crumb for the ant to share with her king.  Baking another cake seems like the perfect way to make it up to him…until the other boastful guests turn her kind gesture into a contest.  

Exactly how many cakes are fit for a king?  

YouTube Vid of Book

The Illustrations

    The illustrations work seamlessly with the story.  They clearly capture the character of each individual animal, and help parents craft funny voices to go along with the dialogue.   They are also an excellent visual aid for the mathematical concepts presented.

The Story

       Comes off like an African folktale that I've heard before, where the lion has his annual party.  Usually, the king of beasts issues punishments to rude guests in a story like this.  But this time, the lion set back and let's the guests punish themselves.  
   

 Likes!  
  I like any story that can introduce complicated mathematic concepts to youngsters without them noticing.  In this story your child will be introduced to fractions, and multiplication, all while listening to an entertaining story of characters trying to out do each other. 

 What I Loved

This story is actually fun to read out loud.  It's easy to get into character and give each of the animals different voices.  It's easy to explain that the animals are over doing themselves trying to one up the ant.  And it's lovely seeing the polite ant get ahead by logical and low drama.

Disliked

My only critique of this story is that the king lion has very little personality. He barely reacts to the rudeness of his guests - only a frown in the illustrations show's he's bothered. 

Nor is there any explanation as to why the animals felt it was ok to be so rude at the King's table.  

This story puts me in mind of African folktales I've heard before.  In those stories there are consequences for animals being rude to the king.  Here the lion says nothing, and does nothing while his guests disrespect his table. 

 I understand that table manners isn't the point of the story.  But I think having the lion express irritation in some way would help lend to the ant's hurried apology, and the other animals rush to overreact. As it stands, why are they even trying to impress the king?  He doesn't really seem bothered by anything.    

Bedtime Breakdown

    This is an excellent story for little listeners of all ages!  It's a good introduction to fractions, and an entertaining support story for multiplication.  It's fun to read out loud, and can easily be told as a free style performance when you don't have the book handy.  I wish the lion of the story had more personality, but there is plenty of characterization in the other animals to make up for it.

This book is excellent for anyone who knows, or is expected to some day learn, fractions, fairness, and multiplication.  

In conclusion.

        If you like this book please show Matt McElligott some love by checking this book out from your local library or purchase it your favorite bookstore.

   Purchase through my  Amazon link to help the blog grow.  

If you enjoyed this review please subscribe to leave a comment here, or leave a comment on BlueSky!  I'm @PB&JellyPhish and I'd love to hear from you.  

    I'm Porsche B. Yeary and 

I'll see you on the next page!

Recommendations

    

Even Aliens Need Snacks  by Mathew McElligott

    Bean Thirteen by Mathew McElligott

Uh-OH! My Dragon's Hungry - by Katie Weaver

            

        View all my reviews

View all my reviews

Cobb/Paulding April 2025 Newsletter.

SCBWI Southern Breeze 

Howdy Howdy! Cobb and Paulding Writers & Illustrators

 

Spring is Popping!  I hope you guys were inspired by the Conference to put your best foot forwards towards publications!  

 

Upcoming Events

Cobb/Paulding Pitch Practice & Presenting  Portfolios!

Friday May 16th 11am-12pm

            Heritage Park

    Encore Meeting: Zoom at 7pm:  Link here

Let’s get together and talk about our babies!  Come prepared to pitch your story to a captured audience, or share your illustration skills with perspective partners. We will pretend to be agents and editors interested in acquiring your work!  Prepare a short one sentence.   Come prepared to try and sell us your story!   

Write down your pitch, but also be prepared to talk about it freestyle.  Remember you are your own commercial!  We will listen, ask questions, and offer feedback. I can’t wait to learn what all of you are working on!

It is important to be an active listener during this activity. Attention to where you loose interest, or at what moments the pitch captures their attention.   

Pitchers should make a note of the questions you’re asked, and what your audience didn’t understand.  You don’t have to give away plot twists, but be careful.  You want your audience to be interested in what comes next, not frustrated by being baited and teased. Think of the blurbs on the back of your favorite books.  What made you give a new author a try?  What did a friend say to spark your interest in a different genre?  Why are you writing this book?  Who is your target audience?  

Things to keep in mind:

Voice – try to write your pitch in the same voice and tone as the story itself.  This gives the reader a sample of the world they are pulling them into.  

Hook - Capture your audience with a single sentence, word or phrase that draws them into the story.

Summary - a short and captivating paragraph that explains your character, their conflict, and what they must do to find happiness.

Lead In - A final paragraph or sentence to let the audience know what they are in for.  Can be credits for the author, a tease at character arches or an intriguing question. 

“What actually happens when you give a mouse a cookie?” 

        ~Cobb/Paulding Bookish Events!~ 

Black Girl Book Fair

Location: The Book Worm in Historic Downtown Powder Springs 

Date: April 26th

Time: 10am - 2pm 

The Book Worm Book Fest

 

Topic: An Event for Book lovers of All Ages

Location: Historic Downtown Powder Springs

 Dates:  April 28 - May 3

~Southern Breeze Events~

Southern Breeze Writing Contest: Pitch-a-palooza!

Date: June 1-30

Writing Tip

Public Speaking goes hand-in-hand with storytelling.  

Whether reading out loud to little listeners, or explaining the complicated plot of a particularly perfect scene to an adult audience, being able to capture the attention of your listeners is an essential skill.

Practice pitching your story, where appropriate, to gauge interest in your work.  Being able to briefly summarize your plot to a variety of different people - especially people in your target age range or demographic will help you think about your message and your theme, and whether or not you are conveying those key elements effectively.  You’d be amazed at how this activity may bring more clarity to characters, help simplify a plot, or weed out unneeded details.  The more you talk about your story the easier it will become to pitch to agents. 

Once you know how to pitch your story pretty smoothly, verbally writing your query for publishers will go a little easier.  Being able to sell your story verbally will demonstrate to agents and editors how they might sell your book.  It will prepare you to become your own advocate and help you sell yourself at school visits, book signings, and conferences!  Prepare for success by practicing your pitch!   

            Attention Illustrators!

Would any of you illustrators of Cobb/Paulding be interested in loaning your artwork to this newsletter?  Nothing fancy, just a bird or butterfly here or there?  Kids reading, or playing or having a great time?  I can’t pay you, but if you’re interested in this small publicity opportunity please DM me.

    You would, of course, be credited for your work and your website or blog would be posted as well. No worries.

Speaking of which!

Credit Here!

Do you have a personal website or posting you’d like to share with your fellow Cobb/Paulding writers?  Perhaps you've found a site that would be useful to your friends!  I would like start a "Website Spotlight" section to this newletter.  So as long as site related to books, writing, or your writing, share the link  with me and I’ll add them to the end of the next newsletters.  Get the word out about your and your writing so that your fellow Cobb/Paulding creatives can check you out!

For example I'll go first:

   

 Website Spotlight!

Porsche B Yeary was a bookworm before she was a writer!  On her blog "The Jelly-Bell Book Club" you'll find what she's been reading lately. See her take on everything from popular pop culture paperbacks, to classic novels, and a few books she read not knowing what she was getting into. 

It’s a lighthearted jog through the mind of your favorite local liaison.   Subscribe to comment so that you never miss a post.  And I’ll see you on the next page!  

Blog and website ads are first come first serve.  So DM soon.  

More to Come

 

Questions? Suggestions? Ideas? Just want to let me know about your accomplishments? Please drop me a line anytime!

 

Porsche B. Yeary SCBWI Co-Local Liaison  Pbyeary.com Twitter @PB&JellyPhish porscheb211@gmail.com

 

Happy Writing Cobb and Paulding!

 

 

 

--

Co-Local Liaison for SCBWI Cobb/Paulding Chapter

www.pbyeary.com

Twitter: @PB&JellyPhish