I love books. Love. Them. I love books for kids. I have hundreds upon hundreds of books for kids in my home. Not just the standards that most people have. I even have some that are not super common. I say all that to show that I have varied tastes in children’s books. I can keep an open mind about them. But please, will someone please explain the appeal of the book “Love you Forever“?

Let me start by saying I don’t hate this book. (Well, I sort of do, but let’s pretend I am nice here.)  I think it could be kind of sweet…in a disturbing way. And I do get the intended moral. (I think.) What I don’t get is why so many Moms seem to love this book so much that they cry (actually cry) when they read it. I don’t get it, and we all know that I am sappy when it comes to my kids. I got 3 copies of this book at my baby shower for Gabrie. Three! And one Mom read it to us., and yes, cried.

For those of you who don’t know the story, basically it is how a boy goes through the different stages of life and his mother is always there to love him. Literally. I mean, that mom is always there! She sneaks up on him all the time when he is sleeping and picks him up, rocks him and sings to him. When he is a baby she does this. When he is 9 yrs old, she does this. When he is a teenager, she does this. When the boy grows up and moves across town, she drives in her car (with the ladder strapped to the top of the car) climbs into his window, crawls across the floor and…yes…picks him up into her lap and rocks and sings with him. I kid you not. Then she gets too old to do this, so the boy goes to her house, picks her up and rocks and sings to her.

Am I the only Mom (person) who thinks this book is a bit creepy?! The mom, for all intents and purposes is stalking her son. (Personally, it would scare the beejeezus out of me if my mom was always sneaking into my room and picking me up to sing to me. Can we say therapy??) And then, the son carries on this…ummm….tradition. Does anyone else see a Norman Bates in the making?

Oh and less I forget, the Boy carries on the tradition of sneaking/rocking/singing with is daughter.

Don’t just give me the “It is a story of enduring love between parent and child” crap. You don’t have to stalk to love. I am pretty sure that is a law.

So tell me, am I the only person disturbed by this book? (And if you tell me it makes you cry, I will make you cry!)
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