If you visit our house
Edie, age 4, will ask you to watch her ride her bike
With a bike that looks too big for her own small frame
She will race round the patio at speed
With a huge grin on her face
Calling out
I LOVE MY BIKE!
When we were sent I Love My Bike
From Quarto Kids
I knew that Edie would love it
Written by Simon Mole
And illustrated by Sam Usher
This is a brilliant book
A gorgeous celebration of father and daughter love
A great gift for any little one beginning their biking journey
It is an utter joy to read aloud
The free verse text has wonderful pace and rhythm
And opportunities to call out I love my bike
And scream Woooooooooooo Hoooooooooooo!
The downhill dash is definitely Edie’s favourite page
The book begins with the little girl sharing her excitement about her new book
She loves how it looks and feels
She is excited to learn to ride
Her positivity and enthusiasm are contagious
And the infectious joy is captivated brilliantly in Simon’s lyrical text
And Sam’s joy filled, emotive illustrations
Edie very much enjoys the little girls determination to do well
And recognises that like her own Daddy
The Dad in the story is supporting his daughter
Encouraging and reassuring her
As she gets to grip with the wibbles and wobbles of riding a new bike
As she gains confidence
The poetry gains momentum
I absolutely love reading this book aloud
It is written to be performed with varying pace and volume
The rhythm of the writing is perfect and reading it feels easy
You are swept along with the daddy and daughter
As he runs along behind her
As she pushes down on the pedals again and again and again
The pride is shown on Dad’s face
As his daughter calls back
I’m riding my bike!
At the little girl’s exclamations
Edie always turns to me and grins or cuddles closer as we read
This is such an engaging book
Creatively depicting a rite of passage that so many young children know so well
The thrill and speed and adventure of riding a bike
The pain and embarrassment and frustration at falling off
Simon’s words provide the perfect soundtrack to the little girl
Beginning to lose control of her bike
As she wobbles
Her arms shudder
And her tummy tangles
And we know what is going to happen before it does
Ow!
Sad and bruised the daughter declares
Stupid bike
I am never, ever riding it again
We feel her pain
Sense her sorrow
We have all been that Dad chasing after our child
Knowing we cannot stop what it is about to happen
Rushing to comfort and reassure our little ones
And to wrap them in love
The illustrations here are so tender and show the beautiful bond
Between father and child
And here in the story is a lesson for new young riders
To get back on the bike
And a reminder to us all
That it does not matter how many times we fall
As long as we get back up and try again
A message for all of us
Big kids and small
To keep on pedalling
This is such a brilliant book
One to be read and enjoyed over and over and over again
We love this book!