Me with You by Kristy Dempsey, Christopher Denise (Illustrator)

From the Publisher

We're a pair beyond compare,
a rare and special two,
in all the ways that I am me
and you're completely you.

From tea time to game time, singing or swinging, in the good times and even the grumpy ones, a granddaughter knows her grandpa is always wonderfully himself, and she is wonderfully herself, and together they are unbeatable! A pair beyond compare, a rare and special two!

With simple rhymes and delightfully charming illustrations, Me with You is the perfect book to remind young readers how unique they and their grandparents truly are.

Booklist

The enticing, picturesque scenes will make readers want to climb right into the pages to participate in each charming episode.

Children's Literature

Anyone who has ever been lucky enough to feel a grandparent's love and support will appreciate this book. Here, a small bear cub reflects upon the meaningful relationship she enjoys with her immense grandfather. In the good times, they are happy together sipping tea, playing on the tire swing, making music, preparing for Christmas, tending to the garden, and more. Then there are the bad times, when the bear cub is sick, sad, gruff, and gloomy. Always, the grandpa bear is available, supportive, helpful, and loving. Young readers will be drawn in by Christopher Denise's beautiful, soft illustrations and the fun activities they depict. Adult readers will have their heartstrings tugged and their memories stirred. This is a lovely, reassuring book that would work well as a bedtime story—especially when read by a grandparent to the child who is the apple of his eye. Reviewer: Heidi Hauser Green

School Library Journal

PreS

This charmingly illustrated take on a reassuring adult-child relationship crosses the line into saccharine and obscure. The text, presumably from the point of view of the child, describes all of the ways she and her grandfather play, spend time together, and support one another. Each rhyming verse incorporates in some form the words "me" and "you." Unfortunately, the voice is adult in tone and sentiment, with phrases such as "tickling ivories," and "On days when being me feels like/the sky was painted black,/you and I together roll/along a brighter track." The mostly full-bleed, color-saturated illustrations depicting a fully dressed little girl bear and her bespectacled grandfather are expressive and appealing. With a painterly feel that showcases the versatility of the computer medium and effective use of color and shadows reflecting the mood of the story, the artwork easily outshines the overly sweet verses. Books about unconditional love are a dime a dozen, and this one breaks no new ground.-Amy Lilien-Harper, The Ferguson Library, Stamford, CT

Kirkus Reviews

A grandfather bear and his granddaughter enjoy each other's company in a variety of ways. Dempsey sets up a verse structure that at first appeals but quickly wears thin. The girl bear says, "When I am me, I'm dressed for tea / with you beside my chair, / Your head held high, you nibble pie / with fancy silverware," and so on: "When I am me, I'm swinging / over puddles from a rope," "I'm me when I am chasing down / the wind that swiped your hat," etc. Grammatical incorrectness aside (nominative cannot be objective), the relentless repetition begs the question, When is this little bear not herself? Denise supplies warmly affectionate intergenerational vignettes that provide visual interest, but possibly not enough to save this well-intentioned effort. (Picture book. 3-6)

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