100 Things I Love to Do with You

Sure to spark readers’ own lists of things they love to do. 

Good for conversation-starting and for intimate one-on-one sharing.

PreS-Gr 2-- In the same format as her 100 Things that Make Me Happy, this book employs rhyming couplets and a diverse cast of characters to celebrate things children can enjoy with the people in their lives. Readers will be familiar with many of the activities, such as "Run Races," "Make Faces," and "Toot Horns," "Pop Corn." But there are surprises, too. Some acknowledge quite playfully that youngsters occasionally engage in less acceptable behaviors, like the activity "Misbehave" that appears above two children jumping on a bed or the words "Make Trouble" beneath the illustration of a boy and girl drawing on a wall. Several like "Make Mud Pies" "Help the Sun Rise" encourage enjoyment of nature, while others such as "Snap Beans" and "Scramble Eggs" depict adult and child working companionably together. The illustrations, all painted on white backgrounds and outlined in thin black lines, are pure delight in their variety and detail. They include several small vignettes on a page, pictures enclosed within half-page rectangles, and full-page pictures framed in white. A striking diagonal scene depicts children who "Run Down Hills" and "Pick Daffodils." Every article of clothing is filled with detailed patterns, and no vehicle is duplicated in a scene of two kids at home playing with a large collection of them. Even text colors match each illustration. Checkerboard endpapers echo the palette within, and the underside of the cover features a poster recapping all 100 numbered activities. VERDICT The great variety of activities will elicit both delighted recognition and surprise; the detailed illustrations invite repeated one-on-one viewing. A first purchase.-- Marianne Saccardi, Children's Literature Consultant, Cambridge, MA

Schwartz follows 100 Things That Make Me Happy with item-by-item proof that just about anything can be an adventure when it's done with a beloved parent, sibling, or friend. Like its predecessor, the book unfolds in pithy rhymes, which revolve around everyday activities and meals ("Climb trees/ Feel the breeze/ Write secret codes/ Eat rocky road") as well as some special trips or occasions ("Make mud pies/ Help the sun rise"). Schwartz's delicately drawn cartoons feature a big cast of pink- and brown-skinned children and adults, blissfully content as they explore their surroundings, play, and relax. Lighthearted repetition ("Stick stickers," "Scoot scooters," "Toast toast") will draw smiles among young readers, and the sheer variety of activities represented ensures that children of all types--rowdy, contemplative, mischievous, sporty, imaginative, always hungry--will find some of their own "loves" among the 100 Schwartz includes. Ages 3-5. (Dec.)