Did I Tell You I Love You Today?

by Deloris Jordan, Roslyn M. Jordan, Shane W. Evans (Illustrator)

Apart or together, near or far, day or night, from childhood to adulthood -- the never-ending reach and power of a mother's love touches every moment of every day, even when you least expect it. All you need to do is make sure to notice.
Deloris and Roslyn M. Jordan, mother and sister of basketball superstar Michael Jordan, celebrate family in this reassuring book about the many special ways we cherish those we love.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Family, Fiction

32 pages, Hardcover

First published November 30, 2004

About the author

Deloris Jordan is Michael Jordan's mother and the coauthor of Salt in His Shoes and Michael's Golden Rules, illustrated by Kadir Nelson; Did I Tell You I Love You Today?, illustrated by Shane W. Evans; and Dream Big, illustrated by Barry Root.

Reviews

[Karen O'Neal · Rating 5 out of 5]

Text-To-Self Connection

This story was very heartfelt and relatable to all readers especially young readers or listeners. I made an instant connection to this story as a mom. This is one of the ways that I taught my personal children about the love that I have for them. All of the "things" that happen in this story are real things that happen to children. Children can identify with these things and learn that they are still loved no matter what. I used lots of these very same words with my children to help them understand that they are loved no matter what. This story defiantly touched my heart.

[Elle Turner · Rating 3 out of 5]

I would like to read this aloud during mothers day or fathers day, as well as have it accessible in my classroom library. I think it is important for kids to be reminded of how much their guardians love them and look out for them. After reading this out loud I would try to incorporate a project that connected with being appreciative towards their moms and dads.

[Monique · Rating 5 out of 5]

We should all tell the children in our lives we love them more. We should certainly show them our love. This is the most important things we need to do for our children. Did I tell you I Love You today?

[Christian allen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I never read this book and would like to read it

[Laurie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Horn Book (Spring 2005)

Wordy, awkward rhymes ("Taking time to listen to you is yet another way / I take the time to tell you, child, that 'I love you' today") mar this depiction of a parent displaying love through action. Vibrant cartoon illustrations of the African-American mom combing the boy's hair, feeding him breakfast, etc., give the book some appeal despite the stilted text.



Kirkus Reviews (December 15, 2004)

A mother tells her child all the ways she demonstrates her love as they experience the events of daily living. Making sure her child is healthy, clean and well-fed, encouraging learning, listening and ensuring security are all opportunities for saying, "I love you." Mother takes time to play and chat and teach, giving her child individual attention. She prays both morning and night that everything she does is understood as an expression of love. Evans's bright, energetic illustrations, rendered in oil, are large-scale, stylized depictions of these activities. What sets this apart is that the protagonists are an African-American mother and child instead of the usual cutesy animals. In the manner of Guess How Much I Love You and other gentle evocations of parental and familial love, this is a tender read-aloud that might become an often-repeated bedtime ritual for the very young. (Picture book. 3-6)



Publishers Weekly (December 6, 2004)

The mother-daughter team behind Salt in His Shoes joins with Evans (The Way a Door Closes) to follow an African- American mother through a typically busy day, chronicling all the obvious and not-so-apparent ways she expresses her unconditional love. At the breakfast table, Evans portrays a woman smiling but vigilant, who makes sure her children eat a good breakfast: "Keeping you healthy, well, and strong, that is another way/ I take the time to tell you, child, that `I love you' today." But although the artist pictures three children, one young son in particular is the focus of the mother's attention: most of the action revolves around him, and the book opens and closes with her offering a prayer at his bedside. Sports-savvy youngsters may wonder whether this basketball-loving boy who wears a Tarheel blue T-shirt is inspired by the legendary Michael Jordan, the subject of the co-authors' first book (others may wonder why the two other children in the family don't seem to warrant equal attention). Evans's warmly portrayed characters, generous rounded shapes and velvety, saturated palette will draw readers into the full-bleed spreads, immersing them in the affection and bustle of family life. Yet by putting the mother's experience, efforts and emotions front and center, the book seems more concerned with modeling good parenting than with engaging the imaginations of preschoolers. Ages 3-6. (Dec.) Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

[Christy Love · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked this book off of the shelf because of the title. When I read the note from the author I knew that this was going to be well worth my read. The purpose of this book is to show kids that their parents dearly love them. They might not always say it, but the little things that they do for them show that they love them. This is important for kids of all ages to realize this.

[Britt Kitko]

Summary: Apart or together, near or far, day or night, from childhood to adulthood -- the never-ending reach and power of a mother's love touches every moment of every day, even when you least expect it. All you need to do is make sure to notice.
Deloris and Roslyn M. Jordan, mother and sister of basketball superstar Michael Jordan, celebrate family in this reassuring book about the many special ways we cherish those we love.

Audience:
- Reading level- Early
- Genre-Fiction
- Topic-Family, love, emotions

Curricular uses: Independent reading- Could be read around Mother's Day by a child, the sentence "I take the time to tell you, child, that "I love you" today" is repeated and the story could be read through the images

Social Issues: Single parent families

Literary elements: First person narration is done from the mothers point of view

Interactions and counteractions of text and image: The images further explain the text and share the emotions that the mother has towards the boy she loves. The pictures show that the little boy appreciates his mothers love without there being any dialogue explaining the way he feels.

[Jorden Foster · Rating 5 out of 5]

**Spoiler alert** Did I tell you I love you today, is a book of poetry. Written by a mother and daughter. The poetry within the books talks of all the times, a mothers love can be felt throughout the day and noticed… if you only look out for it.
I liked reading the poems in the book. Although I very rarely read poetry, I felt quite warmed when reading the words. The book is a great book to stimulate poetry writing, as it follows quite a few different styles. Many poetic devices are used throughout and it’s just lovely to read. The book could be used leading up to Mother’s day, pupils could create their own poem. However that’s not just the limits, it can be used in most lesson, you could create art to go with the poetry, you could write a story based on a poem or a particular page. Lots can be done with this book in the classroom and if it is not used to teach, it should definitely be on the bookshelf.

[Britteny Gilge · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great book that teaches children all different ways that parents show that they love them whether they directly say it or not. Through the illustrations the reader is able to visualize all the different ways parents show their love; getting them ready for school, supporting them in all they do, taking time out of their day just for them. These are relatable scenarios that I found brought back memories of when my parents did these things with me. This book is a great reminder of all the different ways parents show their love for their children. The author does a great job at painting a picture in our head even without the illustrations to support her words. An example from the book of how the author paints a picture is: “when the starts are twinkling in the sky each one burning bright and your sweet innocent face is all aglow, beneath the heaven’s light”.

[Brynaleh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love this book! It's a great book about all the ways parents show children they love them, from making sure they eat healthy to saying prayers for their well-being to making sure they look nice when they leave the house to ensuring they go to school and supporting them doing well there. A great book for helping a child understand the actions that show love. Didn't even realize Michael Jordan's mama is the author until we finished it. I can also see it being useful for at-risk families that are learning to parent more appropriately, as it's action-oriented and really lays out the various ways a parent can show their child they love them (besides saying "I love you" or buying them things, which for some parents are the only ways they know how to "show their love").

[Aleya Williams · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think that this would be a good book to read to younger children. This book shows how parents do a lot of little things that you might not notice to show you that they love you. I liked that the book was about a mother and son, I feel like most books have the daughter as the main character, so it was something different. I also thought that the illustrations were done very well. They also covered both pages, which I think would be good for young children, so that if you were reading a book to a class, everyone would get to see the pictures.

[Lauren · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is just an all-around good book (paired up with watching a few Super Nanny episodes) to remind parents how important it is to daily tell your children how much they mean to you and that you do the things you do because you love and care for 'em. I didn't necessarily like the inclusion of the praying and faith-based stuff, but that can easily be dismissed for the bigger picture and objective of the book.

[J-Lynn Van Pelt · Rating 2 out of 5]

Written by Michael Jordan's mom and sister, this is a simple book that discusses all of the day-to-day ways that moms show their children that they love them. The repetitive refrain says "I take the time to tell you, child, that 'I love you' today." There are points when the rhythm doesn't read smoothly, but the daily events should speak to the young readers.

The painted pictures show an African American family, drawn with somewhat cartoonish details in primary colors.

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

Mother's Day Minis
Great book. It was nice to see read something with no associated names. That means when the book is narrated the child will feel more attentive or even special because the word 'child' replaces any name that could be the character. I think this would be a great hit because read aloud between mother and child.

[Xiyuan Ni · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is a warm story book, showing a normal daily day betwwen a mom and his son. It will remind readers of what their parents do for them everyday. Those things maybe seem humble, and can be easily ignored, but they all contain much love from parents. It is also a good idea for parents to say " I love you" to kids directly.

[Alissa Faust · Rating 4 out of 5]

What kinds of things do our moms do every day to show us they love us? Through colorful illustrations we learn that everything our moms do from feeding us a healthy breakfast to listening to the details of our day are just some ways that our moms show their love.

[Maimoona Albar · Rating 5 out of 5]

There are not a lot of books have black skin characters, and this book is one of them. I like the illustrations of course, and I like the theme of the story. Children sometimes need to know that their mother love all the time even when they ask them to go to bed, which they hate the most.

[Halea · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is about all the things a mother does for their children including telling them I love you. It also rhymes. The illustrations are colorful and big. Great book for teaching kids about love and appreciation of their moms and loved ones.

[Riley · Rating 4 out of 5]

A mother details the ways in which she shows love through her actions towards her son (keeping him safe, taking care of him, spending time together with him, etc.). Such a sweet and gentle tale with a repetitive theme that doesn't get too tiresome :)

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very sweet story that tells kids about all the ways their parents love them by taking care of their basic needs. Using for Valentine story time.

[ErynnMarie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sweet, touching, beautifully drawn. I may have enjoyed this book more than my son. (No, I'm sure that I did.) What a beautiful reminder of the blessing it is to be a mother.

[Mrs Tupac · Rating 5 out of 5]

loved this book it's always important to tell your kids you love them I like how the Lord was included too

[Donna Mork]

A mother prays over her son. Then she lists all the ways she says "I love you" throughout the day, including feeding and caring for him.