We Love You, Rosie! by Cynthia Rylant illustrated by Linda Davick

image source: Indiebound

We Love You, Rosie! by Cynthia Rylant illustrated by Linda Davick (2017)

by Mary K

Opposites like up and down, day and night, and good and bad are introduced in a series of vignettes about Rosie the dog. Each mini story is ended with the phrase "we love you," demonstrating that no matter what she does, or where she is, Rosie is always loved by the two round-headed children who accompany her. This book would be fine in a toddler storytime, as the illustrations are in bright flat colors and certain words and phrases are repeated multiple times. As there are six stand-alone vignettes, storytime presenters could choose to share two, three, or all six depending on the attention span of the group. Because of the repetition and simple word choice, however, this book might also work as an early reader.

Themes/topics: dogs, pets, opposites, love

Sample text from three spreads:

Hello, Rosie. Do you want to go DOWN? Okay. DOWN go the front feet! DOWN go the back feet! DOWN goes the tail! Rosie is going DOWN!

But Rosie likes UP better. UP is better. UP is much better. 

Rosie, you are UP. And we love you.