A companion to Joy and Hope subtly addresses a child’s relatable feelings about anxiety, separation, death and grief in the story of a young girl who worries that her family’s love might not stretch as far as the school she is attending for the first time. Illustrations. - (Baker & Taylor)

Funny, emotional, and uplifting picture book about separation and love, to help children understand their emotions.

Everyone loves everyone in Tess’s house, but when Tess has to leave for school for the very first time, she is worried that her family’s love might not stretch that far. Mom explains that love is like a string, it connects people together even when they are far away. At school Tess notices that all the children have strings! Some are new, some are old, some stretch a long way, and some even stretch right up into the sky. But what happens when a string breaks?

Love is the third in a trio of feel-good picture books from author Corrinne Averiss (Joy (2018), Hope (2019)) - a pure delight from start to finish. A wonderful story that subtly tackles difficult topics of death, grief, separation, and overcoming anxiety.

Tess loves her family, but when she has to leave for the first day of school, she is worried that the love might not stretch that far.

An uplifing picture book, bringing comfort to children who are going to school for the first time, have separation anxiety, have lost a close family member, or are dealing with parental divorce.

Funny, emotional, and uplifting picture book about separation and love, to help children understand their emotions.

Everyone loves everyone in Tess's house, but when Tess has to leave for school for the very first time, she is worried that her family's love might not stretch that far. Mom explains that love is like a string, it connects people together even when they are far away. At school Tess notices that all the children have strings! Some are new, some are old, some stretch a long way, and some even stretch right up into the sky. But what happens when a string breaks?

Love is the third in a trio of feel-good picture books from author Corrinne Averiss (Joy (2018), Hope (2019)) - a pure delight from start to finish. A wonderful story that subtly tackles difficult topics of death, grief, separation, and overcoming anxiety.

Corrinne Averiss is the author of My Pet Star, winner of the Sainsbury’s Children’s Book of the Year, the Stockport Children’s Book Awards and in over 450,000 homes as part of Booktrust’s Pyjamarama campaign. Her first book, A Dot in the Snow, illustrated by Fiona Woodcock, was shortlisted for the CILIP Greenaway award, featured on CBeebies’ Bedtime Stories and in The Sunday Times’ Books of the Year. She is the author of Joy, Hope, Sorrel and the Sleepover, The Boy on the Bench, and Floss the Playground Boss. She is drawn to themes of identity and belonging in her books and aims to deliver big feelings with humour and tenderness.

Kirsti Beautyman works from her studio in Newcastle Upon Tyne, UK, using a range of mediums to build layers of texture and detail which are combined digitally to create her illustrations. She finds inspiration within mundane observations and is often staring vacantly into the distance thinking up narratives and ideas. Kirsti won Picture Hooks Illustrator of the Year Award in 2017.

Corrinne Averiss is the author of My Pet Star, winner of the Sainsbury's Children's Book of the Year, the Stockport Children's Book Awards and in over 450,000 homes as part of Booktrust's Pyjamarama campaign. Her first book, A Dot in the Snow, illustrated by Fiona Woodcock, was shortlisted for the CILIP Greenaway award, featured on CBeebies' Bedtime Stories and in The Sunday Times' Books of the Year. She is the author of Joy, Hope, Sorrel and the Sleepover, The Boy on the Bench, and Floss the Playground Boss. She is drawn to themes of identity and belonging in her books and aims to deliver big feelings with humour and tenderness.

Kirsti Beautyman works from her studio in Newcastle Upon Tyne, UK, using a range of mediums to build layers of texture and detail which are combined digitally to create her illustrations. She finds inspiration within mundane observations and is often staring vacantly into the distance thinking up narratives and ideas. Kirsti won Picture Hooks Illustrator of the Year Award in 2017.

Publishers Weekly Reviews

When Tess, a girl with black wavy hair and light skin, must attend school, she's scared that the golden string of love that she perceives connecting her to her family won't stretch far enough. Her teacher offers comfort ("Tess noticed a little thread between them"), and soon Tess befriends a boy named Harry and begins to perceive people's varying connections. But when her mother is late for pickup, Tess fears the bond's rupture until Mommy arrives with a soothing explanation. Employing the familiar metaphor of love as a string that stretches between loved ones, Averiss adds her own touch with graceful, lightly figurative language ("When Tess visited Granny and Gramps's house, the love she had left there last time was still safe inside," one page reads, the fondness visualized as a golden glow). Beautyman's illustrations are warm and textural, with heartstrings visualized in sweeping loops. A reassuring read for those with separation anxiety. Ages 4–6. (Jan.)

School Library Journal Reviews

PreS-K—"Love connects us no matter what" is the wonderful message in this book. A family with dark eyes and black hair is proud of the love they share: mother and father, Tess, and Tom. Even when they are apart, they know they are connected by love. When Tess, a bit anxiously, starts school, she learns about other families that are also connected by love. The illustrations depict these connections through literal threads, spinning upward for a boy who has lost his father, or between Tess and her new teacher. That visual cue will help younger readers process the message of the book, about how lasting those ties are. The multilayered artwork is luminous and warmly rendered to add to the comforting message of love in family and friendships. VERDICT This will help children name their separation issues, and give parents a loving metaphor for reassuring them.—Debbie Tanner, S D Spady Montessori Elem., FL