How Do I Love Thee?: A Whimsical Picture Book About Celebrating Love, Family, and Nature for Kids

by Jennifer Adams, Christopher Silas Neal (Illustrator)

A gorgeous reinvention of Elizabeth Barrett Browning's famous "Sonnet 43" from the bestselling author of the BabyLit board books and the acclaimed illustrator of Over and Under the Snow.

How do I love thee? 
Let me count the ways.

Whether in soft sunlight or rain-drizzled night or winter's frost-etched breath, three children share the love and joy of friendship while exploring the wonders of nature.  

Bestselling author Jennifer Adams has reimagined Elizabeth Barrett Browning's beloved "Sonnet 43," best known by its opening lines, creating a lyrical, evocative ode to the love of family and friends. Christopher Silas Neal brings the poetry to life with his beautiful, imaginative, and whimsical illustrations.

Genres: Picture Books, Poetry, Love, Childrens, Friendship, Fiction, Storytime

32 pages, Hardcover

Published December 18, 2018

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Jennifer Adams is the author of more than forty books. Her bestselling BabyLit board books (published by Gibbs Smith) introduce small children to the world of classic literature and have sold 1.5 million copies. She is the author of another series of board books, My Little Cities.

Jennifer’s picture books for children, Edgar Gets Ready for Bed, Edgar and the Tattle-Tale Heart and Edgar and the Tree House of Usher are inspired by Edgar Allan Poe’s poem “The Raven.” She also has two new picture books forthcoming from HarperCollins.

Her titles also include books for adults, including Y is for Yorick, a slightly irreverent look at Shakespeare, and Remarkably Jane, notable quotations on Jane Austen.

Jennifer graduated from the University of Washington. She has 20 years’ experience as a book editor, including at Gibbs Smith and Quirk Books. She currently works as a consulting editor for Sounds True, developing their children’s line. Jennifer works some evenings at her local independent bookstore, The King’s English, to feed her book habit. She lives in Salt Lake City with her husband, Bill Dunford, who is also a writer.

(bio from author's website)

Reviews

[Kris · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sweet picture book inspired by the Elizabeth Barrett Browning poem. It is beautifully illustrated and tender and gentle. A perfect bedtime story, and a lovely intro to poetry for the littlest readers.

[The Library Lady · Rating 1 out of 5]

How Do I Loathe This?

I loathe this because this shouldst have "Inspired by the Sonnet by Elizabeth Barrett Browning" emblazoned onto its cover.

I loathe this because though the good artist Neal's work doth make the natural world of Kate Messner's books a truly good thing, alas, his young folk here do look like the young folk in just about every other such book I have seen in recent times.

And above all, I loathe this because adding "thee" and "thy" does not make for great writing, and though omitting these words would make this as mediocre as all the other "I love" books, at least it would make it true and real for the young people it shall doubtless be forced upon.

[Edward Sullivan · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'll stick with Elizabeth Barrett Browning.

[Karyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute illustrations, but not a great use of the poem. Never medal with a masterpiece of literature.

[[Name Redacted] · Rating 1 out of 5]

Uses the poem as a springboard, but pretty quickly spins off into saccharine and pablum. Secularizes and defangs the poem.

[Amanda · Rating 2 out of 5]

I can see this as a book that a certain type of person would very much enjoy or buy as a shower present with well-meaning intentions (it's certainly very pretty to look at). However, the text is not enjoyable--stick to the original Browning poem!--and does not lend itself to any depth of reading. With all of the TRULY worthy books out there, and all the time that should be spent enjoying them, and enjoying your little one's company, why would you want to waste any of your time on a mediocre book?

[Munro's Kids · Rating 2 out of 5]

An adequate re-imagining of E. B. Browning's poem, as a celebration of the love between friends and the happiness found in everyday activities. Clear, diverse, engaging illustrations complement the text. ~ Emilee

[Jeimy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Inspired by Elizabeth Barrett Browning, Adams’s book is delightful.

[Ms. B · Rating 3 out of 5]

Beautiful illustrations accompany this poem by Elizabeth Barrett Browning. Instead of a love poem to a significant other, it becomes a love poem to a child.

[Ben Truong · Rating 4 out of 5]

How Do I Love Thee? is a children's picture book written by Jennifer Adams and illustrated by Christopher Silas Neal. Three diverse children adapt Elizabeth Barrett Browning's Sonnet 43 from love poem to celebration of friendship. As today is Valentine's Day (14 February 2021), I thought it would be apropos to read this book today.

Adams' text is rather simplistic, straightforward, and lyrical. Adams has kept what concepts children can understand of Browning's language, replacing the rest with references to the seasons and kid-friendly language. Backmatter includes brief biographical lines about Browning, as well as the original poem. The illustrations mix the real and the fantastical with Neal’s friendly, matte artwork is softly colored in earth tones.

The premise of the book is rather straightforward. A pale girl with black hair in pigtails, a light-brown–skinned boy with brown hair and glasses, and a dark-brown–skinned girl with afro puffs atop her head are clearly the best of friends, often holding hands or otherwise touching in a story that explores love and friendship.

All in all, How Do I Love Thee? is a beautiful ode to friendship that brings Browning's rhythms to kids' level.

[Storywraps · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book begins with Elizabeth Barrett Browning's classic first line from her sonnet... "How do I love thee?/ Let me count the ways." This best-selling author of Babylit board books and the acclaimed illustrator of Over and Under the Snow have taken Sonnet 43 and modernized the language and created gorgeous matte artwork in soft warm earth tones that bring the words alive to the contemporary child.

Three children, all best friends, share memories and moments together as they move and partake in the wonderment of the great outdoors.

" I love thee in soft sunlight/and rain-drizzled night./ I love thee with a whisper/ and a song/ and a ROAR."

As they do they reminisce about what their friendships means to them. It manifests itself in a celebration of their relationships and family. The last page gives the reader a short bio of Browning and also the original text of Sonner 43. The author has taken something classic and reimagined it into a very classy beautiful book that I would highly recommend.

[Jillian (Peapod Historical Bookery) · Rating 4 out of 5]

A sweet and beautifully illustrated modern retelling of Elizabeth Barrett Browning's classic poem. The simple, lyrical words show the beauty in everyday moments, and the whimsical illustrations depict kids playing in nature through the seasons and finally being welcomed home lovingly by their parents. The original poem is included at the back of the book too, to introduce to young readers who are ready for their next literary adventure. I think this is a lovely way to share a classic work of poetry with young readers, making it understandable and relatable for even the youngest listeners through the beauty of both the words and pictures.

Final verdict: I loved it! I thought this book was great! I might buy it for myself and I would definitely recommend it to others.


{ Review originally posted on my blog, PidginPea's Book Nook. My reviews are honest and my opinions are my own; your reading experience may vary, so give it a read and see what you think. :) }

[Tasha · Rating 4 out of 5]

Based on the famous poem by Elizabeth Barrett Browning, this picture book takes the iconic first lines of that poem and creates something new. “How do I love thee, let me count the ways…” The book shows three friends experiencing each of the ways that love can feel. It can be deep as the ocean, soft like sunlight. It can be quiet or loud, daylight or night time. It can happen in all of the seasons or any time of day.

The text here has a rich echo of the poem it is inspired by, “Sonnet 43.” That poem is also shared at the end of the book, so young readers can hear the original in all of its beauty. This look at love is rich and varied, showing that love can be between friends or family and doesn’t have to be romantic. The illustrations are filled with whimsy, moving from bright light to deep night. The friends in them play together merrily, connect quietly and simply enjoy time with one another.

A lovely book of love. Appropriate for ages 2-4.

[Bethany · Rating 5 out of 5]

HOW DO I LOVE THEE is a beautifully illustrated children's book that is based on Elizabeth Barrett Browning's "Sonnet 43". The most popular phrase from it being, "How do I love thee? Let me count the ways".

In this version, three friends are exploring the ways they love the beauty of nature, the different seasons, and their friendship. It's a great way to introduce poetry to children. No page is left blank and the pictures are engaging and eye-catching.

I love the diversity of the three friends and that Jennifer Adams brought this poem to life. This is one of my favorite poems, so it was fun to share with my daughter in a way that intrigued her as well. She also loves natures like the red leaves in fall, so it immediately caught her attention.


Final Verdict: I would recommend this to fans of poems, nature, stories about friendship, and beautiful artwork.

[CTWard · Rating 5 out of 5]

"How Do I Love Thee?" is a wonderful rendition of poet Elizabeth Barrett Browning's "Sonnet #43" written for her husband, poet Robert Browning.
This book has large enough illustrations for a group-story time and has potential to be a great story-time book with the correct correlating theme, but I recommend that this book be kept for a one-on-one read with a child and their parent/guardian due to it's intimate nature. The book pulls simple examples of the types of love that can be expressed to another individual and matches the description with vast natural scenes to put into context the how much the child is loved and cared for by the reader.
"How Do I Love Thee?" also dedicates the last page of the book for the original "Sonnett #43", printed for readers, primarily adults, to read and see where the story's origin began.

[Jana · Rating 4 out of 5]

This sweet, uplifting picture books celebrates all the way love is present in our communities, in our families, and in our friendships. Using the famous poem by Elizabeth Barrett Browning as the framework, this book updates the language a bit for young readers and complements the text with wonderfully inclusive illustrations. At the end of the book, there is a copy of the poem in its original text. With all of the ways our world seems to be filled with anger and animosity, it's nice that there are books like these to share with young readers that highlight the ways that we come together and appreciate each other. This would be a lovely Valentine gift for all readers. It also would be a good way to explore poetry with young readers.

[Victoria B. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Inspired by Elizabeth Barrett Browning, this reads as a love poem to one's child.

Based on the other reviews, I feel confident that one will either love it or hate it...I happened to enjoy it, not because the poem was especially good, but because my children enjoyed it. Most of the illustrations are dreamy and gorgeous; some of Adam's lines are beautiful-sounding as well (I especially liked how lyrical "winter's frost-etched breath" sounded).

Target audience is ~ aged 5 and under, and with that in mind, I would say that this is a perfect read for them. Would make a great bedtime story, as well as a low-key introduction to poetry and Browning.

[Ashton Jonas · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is an illustrated rendition of Sonnet 43, written by Elizabeth Barrett Browning. The sonnet, and therefore the book, are a story of love and the lengths someone will go to love another person. In this book, the poem is given illustrations and is a mother's story to her child, a friend's story to those dear to them and it is my absolute favorite. I think it is beautiful how a poem of such depth and deep significance could be turned into a children's book and thus communicated to children. I would, and will, use this book in my classroom in lessons on family because I plan to teach kindergarten, but I think it could be used in all grades up into high school to study poetry at various levels and depths.

[Sean Harding · Rating 1 out of 5]

Adams Adventure #26
It's a poem by Elizabeth Barrett Browning and you know its a good poem, not sure it works for the young reading set, or that you should put your name on it,
SO how do you rate this?
I originally rated it 3 - because whilst it was a good poem it was not this authors work - then decided no just ignore the poem altogether to can be rated under the real author - this is not this author's work and it is not a kids poem.
So it's a 1

[Joanne Roberts · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another book I wish I would have written from an author who deserves credit for her passion and insight. Do yourself and those YOU love a favor, and buy them a copy of "How Do I Love Thee?" Poetic and sublime. Heart-felt and warm as a fireside on a snowy night. Thank-you, Jennifer. This book is a gift.

[Miss Vicky · Rating 4 out of 5]

While it should be on the cover that it is a re-imagining/re-working of the original poem, it was still a good re-working for kids. It is more accessible and digestible poetry for the younger audience that picture books tend to be for. It had fun but simple illustrations. Would be good as a storytime or one-on-one read aloud for themes of poetry or love.

[H · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love the illustrations. I want to tear the book apart and hang the pictures in my house. I won't cause it's a library book and you can't share a book with everybody else one's you've ripped out the pages. Plus I think the youth librarians would start to frown at me. They'd be right.

[Jasmine · Rating 4 out of 5]

The illustrations are so pretty in this. Also I like how the poem was put into words kids could understand but still had the original in it. A well thought out book.

Also they're all totally going to end up in a triad and it will be beautiful.

[Marisol Sanchez-Matias · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked this book, it spoke about a poem through a different set of language. It was portrayed at a kids level. I plan to use this in my classroom to teach my students about poetry, and how they can write their own poem.

[Anna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very beautiful book with a lovely message of love and wonderful illustrations. I also really like the feel of the pages. The book is quite precious and I like how the original poem that that the story was inspired from was included in the back of the book.

[saidthestory KIDS BOOKS]

What a wonderful way to repurpose an old poem but a famous writer.

The art tells a story in and of itself, even without the words of the poem.

This is adorable and well done. Perfect for Valentine's Day also.

[Lupe · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very sweet re-imagining of Browning's famous poem. The illustrations remind me of Gyo Fujiwaka. I purchased this for my school collection but it is a very nice book to share at bedtime, too.

[Daisy Thompson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lyrical and poetic text adapted from Elizabeth Barrett Browning's Sonnet #43. Simple, yet whimsical illustrations depict a diverse bunch of children as they journey through the pages.
The original poem is included at the back of the book, which I find as a bonus.

[Emma · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic. Lovely artwork with varied page spreads and characters. Great interpretation of text to be an ode to friendship and family rather than romantic love. I love everything about this one.

[Jessica Furtado · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gorgeous illustrations are more poetic than this bland text. Borrow it to browse the beautiful art.