A Minha Mãe

My Family

by Anthony Browne

Plano Nacional de Leitura Livro recomendado para o 1º ano de escolaridade, destinado a leitura autónoma. O livro ideal para filhos, filhas… e especialmente mães. Livro cartonado, ilustrado a cores. Uma homenagem às mães num livro cheio de ternura. «A minha mãe podia ser bailarina ou astronauta, podia ser uma estrela de cinema ou uma grande empresária. Mas é a Minha mãe, que há-de gostar sempre de mim.»

Genres: Picture Books, Family, Childrens, Love, Storytime, Fiction, Humor

Unknown Binding

First published February 28, 2005

About the author

Anthony Browne, a Hans Christian Andersen Medalist, is the author-illustrator of many acclaimed books for children, including Silly Billy and Little Beauty. He lives in Kent, England.

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.

Reviews

[Hilary · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a nice enough, short picture book about how a young boy sees his mum. His mum is good at lots of things, generally the sort of thing children need, being kind, being strong, being a good cook, being fun. I thought it was a bit sad that the page that shows his mum being a good painter showed her putting on make up, obviously meant to be funny but I found this a bit dated and would rather have seen his mum showing a talent for something other than the usual mum requirements. Made me wonder if there was a dad equivalent of this book by this author.

Read on open library.

[Romelina · Rating 5 out of 5]

No puedo ser objetiva con este libro, me pareció hermoso porque veo a mi mamá en cada página. En sus paginas Anthony Browne nos contará las muchas razones de porque mamá es genial, todo lo que hace y como lo hace nos ablandará el corazón; esto acompañado con unas lindas ilustraciones muy acogedoras, con trazos sencillos pero con muchas texturas que no te dejarán quitar los ojos de encima.

[Abigail · Rating 3 out of 5]

The young narrator of this sweet, heartwarming picture-book tribute to mothers describes his own mom's many wonderful qualities, from her skills as cook and juggler to her butterfly-like beauty and armchair-like comfiness. He concludes with the declaration that he loves his mom, and that she loves him, and always will...

Originally published in the UK as My Mum, this lovely picture-book is a companion to Anthony Browne's earlier My Dad , and is formatted in much the same way. A series of descriptions of the narrator's mom is paired with imaginative artwork depicting her as various animals and objects. In the scene in which the child describes his mother as having the beauty of a butterfly, for instance, she appears in that form, as a butterfly with the same print design as the shirt mom is wearing on other pages. Visually striking and textually engaging, My Mom is a book I would recommend to anyone looking for reassurance tales for younger children - yes, mother will always love you - or for stories about mothers in general.

[Rebecca · Rating 3 out of 5]

The title page of this book displays a yellow heart-sun painting, where playful yellow strokes create beams, that has been thumbtacked under bold lettering, My Mom by Anthony Browne. There is a hint of child-like humility in this illustrator's submission to younger artist days positioned below the tile of his mother. The dedication confirms our suspicion, this book is for Browne's mum and his own wife. A floral pattern, synonymous with "mother," graces some object on every page. The illustrations walk the reader through the possibilities of and characteristics of Mom. This is another portrait book where the character dominates the drawings, the backgrounds are either white or a single color. Mom is not interacting with anyone else in the scenes, she is looking out and focused on us.
The text contains some repetitions for emphasis and humor. Browne assures us that Mom is "really nice"...no, "really, really, really nice!" These captions are found under roaring lions and a crusty looking rhinoceros. But, my favorite illustration is a demonstration of Mom's magical gardening. Holding a pot containing a single heart shaped flower, Mom's fingers are tinted green and flowers are sprouting out of her. She is centered in the drawing, staring out at us. A grid like frame is in the background; each square contains a plant growing an odd assortment of objects. In this scene, Mom seems warm, capable, and focused. Of course, the ending invites us to actual embrace this woman. In a full page bleed, tiny hands are pictured reaching for Mom. The last page is a tender demonstration of love through text and illustration.

[Kokelector · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nuestras madres pueden ser la primera persona en todo: a quién amamos con locura, quien nos cocina por primera vez, quien nos quiere sin condiciones, quien nos desilusiona, quien nos hace reír, llorar y todo un arcoíris de emociones. Es una reflexión que muchas veces no nos detenemos hacer y Anthony Browne con su relato y dibujos; nos invita hacer de una menta sencilla: ¿qué es tu madre para ti? Una hermosa forma de leer literatura infantil con una conexión emocional inmediata. Se queda corto en muchos adjetivos que podemos tener para nuestras madres.

[Sue Winson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like the book. It's sunny, easy to read, full of bright and colourful floral prints, and the illustrations are simply awesome. It's a book about what the author's mum is like. I like those very cheeky texts which make this book a really fun one to read "she's really, REALLY nice, my mum". I love how the author portrays the different aspects of his mum: she is a fantastic cook, brilliant juggler (a multi-tasker?), she can sing like an angel, and roar like a lion, she makes him laugh etc.

I particular like the part where it says "my mum could be a dancer, or an astronaut. She could be a a film star (with a Marilyn monroe's look-alike picture of the mum) or the big boss. But she's MY mum". I think this is really the essence of the entire book: regardless of how she is and what she does and what she loves as a hobby or career, she is my mum, and that is the most important part.

However, this book is not a favourite of 23-month old little-AJ. In fact, he avoids this book whenever he can. His expression looked doubtful whenever this book was read to him, like he wasn't too sure what exactly this book was all about. He is probably unable to associate his mum as the brown hair woman with floral prints all over, with drastic transformation of appearance from Lion to rhinoceros to a little kitten and butterfly and superwoman.

I really, REALLY, like this book. But 23-month old little-AJ doesn't like it, and since this is a children book targeting young kids, his opinion matters. Hence the average rating.

Blog review here: https://storypleasemummy.wordpress.co...

[Sophie R · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely adored this book as a child. I used to read it with my mum, and sometimes also my dad ( who would smile as we read it, know just how amazing his wife was for doing all the things she did, with minimal fuss).

It's a child-friendly, warm characterisation of the hectic general life of mums- shopping, looking after children, working, taking care of family when they are unwell, patching up broken toys, dealing with broken household appliances etc.- and is an illustrated tribute to how fantastic all mothers are. It shows just how reliant families- and in particular, children- tend to be on this one figure, who loves and cares for all, frequently without taking time out for herself to do the things she wants (or to just relax!). For children, I feel like it's a window into the intricacies of the loving parent-child relationship, and for adults, an almost Thank you note from the author to all mums and the monumental effort they put into family life.

N.B. Of course, perhaps it would now be written differently, to accommodate for more recent shifts in family demographics, but as an early 2000s book, I think that it would be far too easy for people to get too political about it. The essence is pure and beautiful, and I think still very relevant for the world today. There is also a 'My Dad' version, too :)

[Claire Holloway · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a lovely book that can be used with children in key stage one. This book says everything the author loves about their mum and makes you consider everything that mums do - this would be good for children to think about. I like how the book uses lots of smilies and metaphors to describe the mum. Children can also write their own version of this story based on all the things they love about their mum. The illustrations are also very important in this book to reflect what the mum is like, for example it says 'she's a great painter' and shows a picture of her putting makeup on.

[David · Rating 3 out of 5]

Si el niñ@ elije este libro y como adulto le ayudas (comprar, regalar, prestar) para que pueda leerlo, ten por seguro que es una buena elección. Si como adulto, te gustaría conocer un poco más sobre el libro, entonces te invito a leer la reseña:
El libro está compuesto por bellas ilustraciones que hacen alusión a enunciados cortos, relacionados de como ve un niño a su mamá. Las ilustraciones son muy detalladas y todas mantienen el conjunto de características básicas de la mamá, como es el color y patrón de la ropa, en las diferentes situaciones enunciadas.

[Jun Wang]

I really like Anthony Browne's painting style, which is realistic and elegant. The pictures in these two books are exaggerated and the words are very few. It is perfect for young babies to start reading enlightenment.
My youngest daughter especially likes the plot of her mother making cakes; every time I told her that "my mother is a great chef", she couldn't help but touch the cake in the picture, pretend to grab it, and take a bite by herself , give me another bite.

[Dorthe Svendsen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jeg har blitt veldig glad i Anthony Browne, og må vel snart ha lest alt. Disse to trodde jeg var tospråklig, men kom bare i kinesisk. Men det gjorde lite, for bildene fungerer utrolig godt. De presenterer både ordtak og kjønnsmønstere. Tror de kan fungere rågodt til opplæring i skolen av begge disse ting! Kan fungere godt for de minste der en skal skrive til bilder også, hva tror vi det står, en setning til hvert bilde.

[Maddy Rigsby · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is great for younger kids at school that are still transitioning to being at school. The book starts out saying that 'my mom is nice' then continues on to say what else 'my mom' is. This is a great book to do before a mothers day activity as well. The pictures in this book will keep the children engaged.

[Brianna Kazmierzak · Rating 4 out of 5]

This would be a good book to read around Mother's Day. Students can try to find connections to the book, and they can think about who in their life is an important figure, such as the mom in this book.

[Children's Bookshelf · Rating 4 out of 5]

Super cute book! Narrated by a child talking about all the things his mum is. The pencil crayon style illustrations are lovely too. It’s impossible to read this and not end up with a big smile on your face 😊

[Anabela Mok · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is an outdated book that portrays mothers as juggler of the house, cook, or maybe work. It does not account. for the fact that that moms can also be athletes or breadwinners. Not all moms can cook or garden. Not all women wear makeup. “

[Zara Fuad · Rating 5 out of 5]

Super love sama buku ini!
Ilustrasinya cantik dan menggambarkan banget kehidupan ibu setiap harinya dari sudut pandang anak tapi kok bisa bikin hati ibu meleleh. Di akhir banyak kalimat menyentuh hati padahal itu kalimat pendek-pendek. Bakal aku simpn dan baca buku ini kalau merasa down.

[🐣 · Rating 3 out of 5]

a cute book that shows a young boy's mother in an appreciative light - "mum is everywhere and everything" type book. if reading to a class might be best to take into account individual situations of children in class as many might not be able to relate to having a loving mum, or any mum at all.

[Lesliexd · Rating 1 out of 5]

Nothing interesting, doesn't talk about a mom being more than that at the end, wich may have been a good plot twist to the kids so they learn to respect that mommies are people with other dreams apart of the maternity.

[Kathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great book to introduce anchor lines as well as similes.

[Linda · Rating 3 out of 5]

P1 “My mum’s a fantastic cook,...”

Ah well

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a sweet book but a little dry. My son gave me a hug at the end so that is a plus too.

[Lucy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked how the illustrator used the same print on the mom's outfit throughout the narrative - whether astronaut or boss or anything else she was always in the floral pattern.

[Adrián · Rating 5 out of 5]

me gusto

[hey Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

llorando ando

[Victoria · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book a lot. I am reading it now to my little sister.

[Steph]

Turn/Level: 2/2

Themes: Mothers

[Black Flamed Candle Books 🕯️📚 · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really loved the floral illustrations symbolising ‘mum’.

[Majo Fonticoba · Rating 4 out of 5]

Justo en el cora.

[Elspeth Frudd · Rating 1 out of 5]

Old fashioned, bit sexist stereotypes - mum is strong because carrying all the shopping, painting is putting on makeup etc.

[Javi Moya · Rating 5 out of 5]

Perfect for mother's day!
I would add some references to mother's from different countries.