We love you, mr panda

Mr. Panda #5

by Steve Antony

Mr Panda is ready for some hugs in this laugh-out-loud picture book from the creator of The Queen's Hat and Please Mr Panda Mr Panda is offering free hugs to all his animal friends - but they are all busy hugging each other! Does nobody love Mr Panda? Praise for Mr 'An ideal book for kids to learn about the importance of good manners.' Sun 'There's a new pre-school politeness tsar in town.' The Times

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

32 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 2020

About the author

Since his 2014 debut, Steve Antony has so far written and illustrated over 20 picture books, including the Mr Panda series, The Queen Collection, Unplugged, Green Lizards Vs Red Rectangles, Amazing and You Can. Steve has been nominated seven times and long listed once for the Kate Greenaway Medal. The Queen's Hat was adapted into a musical concert by the London Symphony Orchestra and won the Evening Standard's Oscar's Book Prize. His award winning Mr Panda series has so far sold over one million copies worldwide and has been optioned for TV. Steve also illustrated Tim Minchin's When I Grow Up, a cover of the Famous Five and the all-new Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (adapted by Peter Bently). He has contributed work to the LGBTQ+ Pride YA anthology and Drawing Europe Together.

Reviews

[Shane · Rating 2 out of 5]

I've enjoyed the Mr Panda books before, but I didn't enjoy this one much. There is no explanation as to why the animals are shunning Mr Panda & then suddenly come running back.

I still love his facial expressions though!

[Sushie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Iggi's Storytime Criteria
Age group: Elementary+
Content: free hugs, affection, politeness
Plot: Mr. Panda's giving away free hugs but nobody wants one from him until the very end.
Wordiness: Medium-low
Length: Short
Illustrations: Cute as always
Page Gloss: matte
Other: This is kind of a weird one in the Mr. Panda series. The other books have seemed to be about good habits and manners, but this one is a bit conceptually complex, so I wouldn't do it for a storytime because that's not a great setting for the kind of discussion I'd want to have about it. Mr. Panda is asking for hugs in every way except directly saying he would like one, which gets into the kind of invisible social rules that are confusing even to me as an adult. This is further complicated by issues of bodily autonomy that some other children's books have begun to cover. The message "You don't have to hug anyone that you don't want to" gets muddied by this book that could have probably covered "Sometimes people tell you what they want in different ways than their words" with something besides hugging and been more clear.

[domduclos · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ce livre, c'est probablement celui que j'ai lu le plus à mon garçon, du haut de ses deux ans 🙈. Je connais l'histoire par coeur et il sait exactement ce que répondrons les animaux à chaque page. Ce n'est pas un livre très élaboré, j'en conviens, mais de voir à quel point ce livre rend mon garçon heureux, je ne peux pas m'empêcher de mettre 5 étoiles 🙈

[Tanya · Rating 1 out of 5]

Even though it’s a happy ending, there is a lot of rejection along the way. And the same friends who early on didn’t want hugs from Mr. Panda when he was offering free hugs and communicating to friends about sharing those hugs with them, later gets all that he wants. It doesn’t feel right though - it feels like a form of bullying to me with all of the early ignoring and flat out rejection. I would not buy this book and if I had a young kid clamoring to read this one based on the illustrations, I am not sure I could read it. It just feels like Mr. Panda got used and I wouldn’t want to promote that at any age.

[Liz Todd · Rating 3 out of 5]

How can we read this book and not follow it up with a hug-party? Pandemic-Sadness!

[Lara · Rating 3 out of 5]

This story made a little less sense than some of the earlier books. Why are they ignoring Mr. Panda only to come running back? Didn't follow that one as well.

Still, I love his facial expressions, and I love how the artist plays with color and black and white. The illustrations in this series as a whole remain some of my favorites stylistically. Plus, I love me a curmudgeonly bear (my fondness for Mr. Panda and Mother Bruce offer some strong evidence for that).

Can see using this in a storytime on all sorts of animals (not limited to pandas), or for Valentine's. It's about love and friendship and hugs, without being specifically romantic. Always nice to have more of those to throw into the storytime rotation in mid-February.

[Kalynne]

Date: 02.12.24
Attendees: 31
Theme: Love

Introduction and announcements: We wiggle and wiggle and stop

Book one: Love, Z by Jessie Sima

Song/rhyme/game one: I wave a scarf (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vMWC8...)

Book two: Viking in Love by Doug Cenko

Song/rhyme/game two: Silly Dance Contest by Jim Gills

Book three: We Love You Mr. Panda by Steve Antony

Song/ rhyme/ game three: Make a Heart action rhyme

Activity: https://sassydealz.com/wp-content/upl...

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mr. Panda is giving out FREE HUGS! Many of the animals want a hug, but not from Mr. Panda. He's feeling glum and walks away, when his friends lemur and penguin ask if he would like a hug. Mr. Panda would LOVE a hug! And in rush all the other animals telling Mr. Panda that they love him.
Charming and heart-warming! I love Mr. Panda too!

Teaching points: friendship, character traits

Grade level: K-1

Location: LES library

Related reads:
Mr. Panda series by Steve Antony

[Erin · Rating 3 out of 5]

This doesn't quite live up to I'll Wait, Mr. Panda. We adopted the penguin's refrain from that one when I need the kids to be patient. But this one offered the repetitive "FREE HUGS" visual, which meant my five-year-old could sound it out and then identify those words throughout the book.

[Darla · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a sweet read to share on Valentine's Day.💟

Mr. Panda is giving our free hugs, but all his friends seem to be hugging each other or themselves(Mr. Sloth) instead of him.

Never fear! This book ends with a big old group hug and Mr. Panda is right in the middle.🐼🤗

While I was reading this one, I took a few minutes to peruse the whole Mr. Panda series. It's a good one for helping remind kids of good manners and how good donuts are.

🐼Please, Mr. Panda is a good reminder for saying PLEASE.
🍩I'll Wait, Mr. Panda helps us all remember to be patient.
🎁Thank You, Mr. Panda establishes gift-giving etiquette.
😴Good Night, Mr. Panda sets up some wise night-time habits.
🧼Wash Your Hands, Mr Panda is perfect for flu season!

If you want a short read with a concise message and donuts, check out the Mr. Panda series.

[Calista · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mr. Panda is giving out free hugs and no one seems to want them. So sad. The story ends well, never fear. There is a hug pile.

The animals are so very cute. How can you not love them. I love the elephant hugging the mouse. So good.

I've worn a sign that said free hugs before and I enjoyed that. I also met some friends for dinner one night and we were hugging outside the restaurant. There was a homeless man there watching. After we finished, he said, "He, can I get a hug too." I said, "You bet" and I gave him a hug. He was a little surprised that I did it too. He thanked me and I went to eat. I can related to Panda.

The artwork is pencil and graphite stickes. The atrist is also red green color blind which is funny since the book is red. The animals are adorable.

Great for kids who love animals.

[Gerrrrry · Rating 2 out of 5]

We Love You, Mr. Panda / Te amamos, Sr. Panda has a cute premise, but it misses the mark as a children’s book. The story follows Mr. Panda asking his friends for a hug, only to be rejected by each of them with no explanation. For a book aimed at children, this lack of kindness and resolution feels harsh and unhelpful. While the illustrations are colorful and engaging, I wouldn’t recommend this one for kids due to its negative tone.

Spanish Vocabulary from the book:

Abrazo - hug
Zorrillo - skunk
Daré - I will give
Coco (short for cocodrilo) - Croc / Crocodile
Puedes - can
Darme - give me
Elefante - elephant
Ratón - mouse
Perezoso - sloth
Ovejas - sheep
Avestruz - ostrich
Supongo - I guess
Nadie - nobody

[Rose Rosetree · Rating 5 out of 5]

What makes this story interesting? Is the main story really about Panda's insatiable need for hugs?

Or is it more whatever emotions the book reader -- and readee --sticks to it. Feelings about needing hugs. Wishing for hugs. And more.

I'm guessing this is a FIVE STAR read, for those with a ton of extra feelings about giving-and-receiving love. May this book give such people a place to put those feelings.

[Andrew · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mr. Panda is prepared to give all his animal friends a hug if they need one-- and they do want hugs, just from some other critters instead. But who will hug Mr. Panda if he needs one? This is my first Mr. Panda book, and it's simply adorable! I would love to give this big softie a hug myself. I love you, Mr. Panda!

[Madison LibraryBookFamily · Rating 3 out of 5]

My kids love Mr. Panda, but this isn’t my favorite of the series. Mr. Panda advertises “Free Hugs” to all his friends, only to be shut down in favor of other animals. His face while drawn simply expresses a lot of emotion. My kids found the picture of him buried in a pile of friends at the end hilarious.

Might be helpful to discuss consent, friendship, and feelings.

[The Book Squirrel · Rating 2 out of 5]

I love Mr Panda, but this was not my favourite. No one wants to hug Mr Panda - poor Mr Panda! If I'm going to be super-critical, I would say that physical affection (the asking and the giving) can be used as a form of emotional manipulation. I know that that is absolutely not what this book is about, but even then, I couldn't really connect with this.

[Jennifer · Rating 2 out of 5]

The illustrations and Mr. Panda's facial expressions are the stars of this book. I'm not sure why everyone was shunning Mr. Panda until the end, but you could use this book to discuss how to more clearly express our own needs. However, there's better books out there for that and for discussing consent.

[Lara Bate · Rating 4 out of 5]

We Love You, Mr. Panda by Steve Antony is a story of a Panda who is giving out free hugs. No one hugs him and then he feels lonely. The animals realize he is lonely and upset and they all give him a hug.

[Ellon · Rating 1 out of 5]

Eh. I didn’t enjoy this one. Why was everyone being so rude about the hugs in the beginning and hugging the animal next to Mr.Panda when he was the one who offered the hug. I dunno it just left me with a weird feeling

[Pam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mr. Panda wants to give hugs to all of the other animals but they get hugs from someone else. Finally, someone offers him a hug and that starts a major pile up of hugs for Mr. Panda.
Charming story about friendship and support.

[Melanie Hetrick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mr. Panda is feeling down as numerous animals pass up his free hugs t shirt advertisement for hugs with others. Finally Meerkat sees that Mr. Panda needs a hug and leads the charge of animals that finally notice.

[Margaret · Rating 3 out of 5]

In this one, I was mostly feeling bad for Mr. Panda, which was ignored for most of the story until he wasn't. (And in the other one I read, it was Lemur who was ignored for most of the story.)
I don't think this series is for me.

[Megan Swenson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't enjoy this book as much as I enjoy the original "Please Mr. Panda," but it was still a cute book. There isn't really a message or lesson to be taught with the book and it doesn't make a ton of sense. However, it could still be a cute read-aloud, especially in February.

[Asho · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Mr. Panda books are always a hit with my kids. L was the first to like them when she first discovered them a few years ago, but now F (5) enjoys them, too, and will probably be able to read them independently very soon. This one prompted lots of "awwwws" from both girls.

[OxoNewbie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I picked up this book because I loved "Please Mr Panda". It's not as good and I am not sure I get it. Is it trying to show the pain of exclusion and being ignored? Everybody needs a hug sometimes I guess.

2 stars.

[Justine · Rating 4 out of 5]

We are big fans of Mr. Panda haha and when I saw this one I knew I needed to request it for Valentines Day. We are a bit late but that’s okay. We really enjoyed this one and my daughter loved Mr. Panda’s free hugs shirt lol.
A great read for everyone. It will get you in the feels.

[Audrey | WellReadandUndead(ish) · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ah, I see. This could be the first time you introduce the “I don’t like, I love” joke to a child. As far as the surprise endings this series usually has, this one was weak. Still might be a nice read for some who adore the series, though.

[Lin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Grumpy but needy panda

[Alicia · Rating 4 out of 5]

For: panda fans; readers wanting a book about the importance of hugs.

Possible red flags: feeling left out; rudeness.

[Amy Allgeier · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not my favorite of these.