I was passed the book as the child’s preferred bedtime reading material and asked to read it to the very awake 4 years old that showed no sign of sleep. I reluctantly agreed as I was telling the third story of the night and had zero confidence that it would have any better success than its predecessors.
I picked it up and examined the book’s cover. Louise Coulthard and PS Brooks had done a lovely job on the large cover which contained a hand-drawn picture of a loving mummy deer and a doting baby deer.
Each double page within showed the pair with forest scenes and words like “Mummy, I love you. I feel so precious when you hug and hold me tight!”
Mummy, you find the tastiest treats when my tummy starts to rumble. Thank you for always leaving the yummiest pieces for me
Mummy, I love the fun we have when I run and leap and dash as fast as I can. You cheer me along and squeeze me tight when I stop for a cuddle. Watch how high I can jump!
Mummy, we always take time to smell the flowers. You show me how little moments of beauty can make every day special
Mummy, you reassure me when I am feeling shy. Things don’t feel as scary when you hold me close.
Mummy, you teach me to be kind when someone is having a hard time and to make sure no one is left out or left behind.
Mummy, we play the best games together. I love playing hide and seek with you and it’s just as much fun to cuddle when you find me!
Mummy, I love it when we splish and splash together in the river. I feel safe as we swim side-by-side through the clear water
Mummy, it’s so lovely and safe and warm when we snuggle up tight as you tell me the most magical bedtime stories.
Mummy your hugs are so special!
But do you know what my favourite hugs? When it’s my turn to hug you!
I LOVE YOU MUMMY
No Daddy then?
As a father of two, who suffered hugely from parental alienation syndrome where, in my case, their mother dripped venom into young ears, I found this book profoundly disturbing in its one-sided portrayal of parenting.
It may well be that Daddy deer had been neglecting his duties as a father but if, as was the case here, this child was stuck between two warring parents this book could easily have been used, even subconsciously as a weapon for Mummy to reinforce her role as a parent and his as an absent parent.
It’s all in the eye of the beholder, isn’t it? I’m sure the author never thought for one moment that writing a children’s book about a mother’s love for her child and the child reciprocating could be viewed as divisive content helping to break up relationships and reinforce destructive stereotypes but there you are.
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