We are Family Book Review

Christmas is over (bbbooooo) and this of course means that the new year has begun so I'm starting off with a book review of a truly wonderful story from those guys over at caterpillar books, an imprint of Little Tiger. We are Family will be released next week and it is a tale that will start both yourself and your children with the right mindset for the year ahead.

Whoever we are and whatever we do, our families hold us together like glue. 

Told with rhyme and beautiful illustrations from Ryan Wheatcroft, this book follows ten diverse families as they progress through their own daily routines. What I immediately like is how it reflects our modern day society. Each page portrays something different. We begin with what they do in differing weathers continuing on to the foods they eat, how they travel, the things they do together and just how each family member manages to support one another.

All families are different - and yet in many ways the same. This book celebrates the differences and similarities between ten families as they eat, sleep, work and play together.

Having ten different families images throughout the book makes it feel like you are actually getting to see ten different stories because as you look at the pictures you begin to discuss what is happening in each one and just what they might be thinking and feeling. It is like you can prolong the tale and expand it further, noticing slightly different things each time you flick through the pages.

Whenever we need them, they'll come when we call, they're ready to catch us, if ever we fall.

What is good is that although there is a lot of happiness spread throughout, we also get a glimpse at harder times, perhaps when someone in the family becomes poorly or times where an event happens to make them sad. This gives an insight into things like empathy, acceptance, even a bit of team work and moral support.

Money doesn't matter, nor colour, creed, nor name - in each and every family, the love we feel's the same. 

This isn't just a book, it is a learning tool, showcasing to children that families come in all shapes and sizes, so for someone who perhaps is an only child they can see how a larger family might interact and vice versa. It is a great piece of visual literacy. What it illustrates is that race, culture etc really don't matter. It brings the message that really kindness and love trump everything else and what better way to demonstrate this than families being together.

A gentle rhyming text and vivid illustrations bring each family's story to life. 

We are Family is a heart-warming read, it gives a sense of hope, a feeling of joy and a real celebration of life and how we live. Not only a good book to have on a book shelf at home but I think it work really well in schools too, one to encourage acceptance of everyone. This is a book moving with the times, many more should follow.