I Love My Mama

by Peter Kavanagh, Jane Chapman (Illustrator)

A charming picture book follows a Mama and Baby elephant as they go about their day--walking through the savannah, splashing in the cool river, sunning themselves in the afternoon, and telling stories under the moon.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Animals, Family, Fiction, Love, School

32 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2002

About the author

1960 Born in Hinckley, Leicstershire.

1969 Moved to Ballymoney, County Antrim.

1971/1978 Education at Dalriada Grammar School, eight O-levels, three A-levels.

1979 Foundation Course at the Ulster Polytechnic, Belfast.

1980/1983 Graphic design education at Somerset College of Arts and Technology, regional diploma and membership of the SIAD.

1983/1985 Graphic designer at Video Graffiti, Milton Keynes working on industrial audio-visual productions such as new product launches, corporate presentations and training programmes.

1985/1988 Graphic designer at CAL Video Graphics, Soho, London working on television title sequences, adverts and film special effects.

1989/2006 Freelance designer, illustrator, author, tutor and artist.

Today I work mainly as a children’s book illustrator and author. I’ve had over one hundred titles published, recent books being Ella’s Games, What Next, Ted? and Arthur the Wizard. I’ve illustrated authors such as Dick King-Smith, Jacqueline Wilson and Tony Bradman.

I paint and draw the human figure and have had exhibitions at the Madder Market Theatre, Norwich and Sheringham Little Theatre as well as participating in Open Studios and exhibiting in local galleries. I also exhibit in galleries in Brighton, Fareham and Southampton.

I regularly visit schools and libraries and work with children on books and drawing. I teach art classes and writing courses for Adult Education, private groups and individuals.

Reviews

[Kathryn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Super cute, especially if you love elephants (as I do). The illustrations are so sweet and yet full of atmosphere, too. The rhyme scheme is a bit awkward at times, but it's still a nice twist on the usual kid-loves-mom story.

[Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'd love to give this four stars for the illustrations alone, which were adorable and pretty accurate for an illustrated version of an elephant.
Baby elephants are some of the cutest things around, and the illustrator managed to capture that quite well!

The text is sweet, and I love the idea of outlining everything special that the mother and baby elephant do together. But, there wasn't anything overly endearing, and the rhymes weren't always that fluid. Still though, I'd recommend this for the sweet pictures!

[Kimberly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really cute, and absolutely gorgeous pictures.

[Valarie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lovely illustrations (even the end pages) and a cute story about why the baby elephant love his/her mama.

[Miss Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

An elephant and his mamma spend the day together having fun and loving each other from start to finish. Simple and sweet. Baby and up.

[Bethy Clarke · Rating 4 out of 5]

Most definitely a EYFS book - bit too sweet and cutesy for me! Also a lot of 'almost' rhyming which I wouldn't encourage with children.
That being said, it's a great book for subliminal messages about attachment, relationships, love, security, and guardianship.

[Michelle Glenn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not a typical book of poetry or normal rhyme scheme, concept of love however shines through. Elephants and their feelings would encourage discussion and questions. Book may be for ages 3 and older, but illustrations would draw younger children.

[Amy Phelps · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute book, some rhymes.

[Brhea P · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this story! It's perfect for a mother to read to her child(ren) and reflect on their bond. the illustrations are great also!

[Kyrstin Elizabeth · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sweet but not much in the way of content.

[Lacey Hall · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a cute book about the love for a mother

[مصطفي سليمان · Rating 5 out of 5]

مع أنها قصة بسيطة للغاية عن فيل صغير بيكتشف العالم مع والدته ولكني حقيقي اتاثرت للغاية يمكن الرسوم كان ليها أثر عليا أكبر من اي تأثير تاني
مواقف بسيطة للغاية ولكن مؤثرة بالنسبة ليا علي الاقل

[Suzanne Lorraine Kunz Williams · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love how this book shows the loving relationship that moms have with their children.

[Haela C · Rating 4 out of 5]

Adorable look about a mother’s love as she spends time playing with her child

[Blakely Pierson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I said elephant for the first time while reading this book!

[Hannah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute book about a mama and baby elephant!

[Lillian Martin · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was fun because it was about moms and kids loving. And now I know more about elephants!

[Samantha Brumbaugh · Rating 3 out of 5]

Summary: Mama and Baby
elephants
love to
dip and splash,
walk and sing,
rest and talk,
and cuddle together
under the stars.
Spend a day with them.
Genre: Fictional Picture Book
Reading Level: Late Emergent, This book is late emergent because it only has one or two short sentences on each page. The font is rather large and is very easy to read. This story has many high frequency words in it and the pictures help to explain what is going on.
Topic: Bonding between child and mother, an elephant's life
Curriculum Uses:Read Aloud to very young children preschool-1, Independent read or guided reading in k-1.
Social Issues: This book discusses what elephants do and how they interact with one another. It also states what mother's do and how they care for their young.
Literary Elements: This book uses rhyming on every page. The last words of every other sentence on the page rhyme such as, "We dip and dive and splash and splish. Fun like this is all we could wish." The book also uses imagery in many instances.
Illustrations & Text: The illustrations in this book are very well done and help you to feel like you are on the dusty plains with the elephant. The text discusses the close bond that the mother and child have and the pictures help to show this bond.

[Nell Adams · Rating 5 out of 5]

The first thing I would like to say is that this is an extremely cute book. It is a story being told by a baby elephant saying all the things he enjoys to do with his mom. At the end he says that when they sleep his mother's love is always around him. The pictures describe the text and are very colorful making the book have energy and want the reader to continue. This book can certainly be applied for teachers around mothers' day or even just to teach that mothers are always there for the kids. It is a cute book, I certainly recommend reading!

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

As usual, Jane Chapman has done a fantastic job with the illustrations, but the story is nothing special. Baby Elephant and Mother do things together, and have tender moments, but the rhymes are hit or miss. I gave it four stars purely because I think elephants are cute, and because I watched a documentary about them and discovered that Elephant mothers are actually very devoted and dedicated mothers, and will even mourn for years the loss of a calf.

[Krys (Krys Reads) · Rating 4 out of 5]

A beautiful little tale of the relationship between mum and baby elephant and how they would generally spend their day in lines that are short and rhyme. The pictures are beautifully done which accompanies the script and adds extra emotion to the words. I would highly recommend this book for a lovely little bedtime story.

[Theresa · Rating 3 out of 5]

I Love My Mama
Kavanagh, Peter
a cute story about childhood and mothers teaching children their connections with their parents a good book to read at home so kids are reminded where learning and love connect

[Melanie Hetrick · Rating 2 out of 5]

A well-illustrated story, if not factually correct. I didn't think children would notice, but they did. Had a young boy point out to me that elephants actually put dirt on themselves on purpose to keep bugs away and to protect their skin. The elephants in the story were washing off the dirt.

[Redfox5 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really sweet story about a mummy elephants love for her baby elephant. My Niece started this book with her eyes open but she had them closed by the end. I like to think my soothing voice was the reason and not becuase the story was dull! (She is less then 3 weeks old).

[Leah · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very sweet story about the love between child and mother (*elephant* children and mothers, to boot). Bouncy rhymes and nice illustrations. Might work in a babytime, but would definitely be one for the parents!

[Wendy Daniel · Rating 4 out of 5]

The baby elephant in this story is so cute. I also know the patience that mama elephant exhibits is quite nice. The language of the story promotes phonological awareness and an increased vocabulary for children (ages 1 - 3 years old).

[Karen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved the title (of course) and the artwork, but the story itself is rather flat. First there is a weird rhyme/almost rhyme/not a rhyme scheme, which makes reading the book out loud really awkward. Then there is not really a story to the... er... story.

[Anna Chaddick]

This book was cute, but not my favorite. It talked about the various things that the baby elephant enjoyed doing with his mom throughout the day. Basically it all boiled down to how much he loved his mom and spending time with her. Just seemed kinda dull to me.

[Tricia · Rating 3 out of 5]

sweet tale of a mama and baby elephant going through their daily routine.

[Rebecca Cripe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such a sweet story!