The Boy Who Loved Everyone
by Jane Porter, illustrated by Maisie Paradise Shearring
Interest age: 3 to 5
Published by Walker Books, 2019
About this book
Dimitri is new at nursery, and no matter how many people (and trees) he says 'I love you' to, no one says it back. Dimitri starts to get really sad. Even the guinea pig seems to want to get away!
When Mum walks him to nursery the next day, she explains that people show their feelings in different ways: the mean old man on the park bench is telling the stray cats he loves them by giving them tuna. Berthe the dinner lady says 'I love you' with her smile. Stella, Sue and Sophie tell the birds they love them by feeding them seed. Encouraged, Dimitri starts to see that most people love others.
A touching tale with a theme of emotional honesty and intelligence, The Boy Who Loved Everyone teaches children that the way others react and feel may not be the same as they might do, but that there are as many ways of expressing love as there are people. Shearring’s diverse illustrations are a real joy, especially the lovely nursery teacher.
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