Books by Gliori

Flora's Blanket

by Debi Gliori, Gliori

From Publishers Weekly

As she showed in previous books such as Tell Me Something Happy Before I Go to Sleep and No Matter What, Gliori excels at conveying a warm and supportive family. Here she knowledgeably explores a toddler's attachment to her security blanket. Without her beloved carrot-patterned blanket, Flora Bunny can't sleep. Her five siblings generously offer their own as substitutes, but she insists, "Want mine." An exhaustive search of the house and grounds yields nothing. So Mom and Dad let Flora snuggle up in their bed, where, lo and behold, her father discovers the missing item under his pillow. The loving perseverance of Flora's parents and brothers and sisters, as they amble and scramble around the house in search of the blanket, dominate the spreads. And the family dynamic (one sibling in striped pajamas reads a book throughout the search; torsos and feet show under tables or are draped over chairs) will hit the funny bones of and strike a chord of recognition with any toddler or older sibling. Ages 3-6.
Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

Product Description

From School Library Journal

PreSchool-A charming book about an endearing rabbit family. Flora has lost her security blanket and can't sleep without it. Her five siblings offer up theirs, but she has to have her own. The family searches from the living room to the kitchen to the bathroom, and they inspect the sandbox and the cellar, but to no avail. Nearly asleep, Flora is finally allowed to snuggle in bed with her parents, and Dad finds the missing item under his pillow. The delicate, detailed watercolor illustrations portray a comfortable homeliness while Flora and her family wear expressions of concern, frustration, exhaustion, and relief. Like Flora's beloved blanket, the endpapers have a carrot-and-ladybug print on a white background. Excellent for bedtimes and as a read-aloud during toddler storytimes.
Christina F. Renaud, Attleboro Public Library, MA
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Ages 1-3. Little Flora Bunny is standing in her crib, unable to sleep. It's not a bad tummy or sore ears that are keeping her up, it's her missing blanket. Flora's many siblings, as well as her parents, go on the hunt as a miserable, thumb-sucking Flora watches, growing ever more agitated as one hiding place after another is ruled out. Finally, she is taken into her parents' bed. What is that lump under Daddy's pillow? Yes! Gliori gets just about everything right here. The oversize ink-and-watercolor art is deceptively simple, offering large shapes that are easy for young eyes to take in. But there's subtlety, too. Gliori knows how to make much of a drooping shoulder, a pat on a child's head, and, of course, a clutching hand on a favorite blanket, finally found. This is comforting, cozy, and just right for two-year-olds' story hours. Ilene Cooper
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Review

When a wee bunny misplaces her beloved blanket, the entire family bands together for a search-and rescue mission. Little Flora can't sleep a wink without her special blanket. With offers of replacements from her siblings summarily refused by the disconsolate bunny, everyone embarks upo a house-and-yard-wide search. As the regular spots fail to turn up the elusive bedding, they begin to look about in nonsensical locations, such as inside the refrigerator and in the greenhouse. Alas, the rabbit clan wanders over house, hill, and dale in vain. When the fruitless search is ultimately called off, Flora's blanket is discovered in the likeliest (but overlooked) place---tucked into mommy and daddy's bed. Gliori's simple but comical tales has just the right blend of reality and silliness to tickle any funny bones. Preschooler can empathize with Flora's predicament while giggling over the bunny's family's increasingly outlandish search. Full-page, full-color bleed watercolor illustrations depict an irresistibly cute clan