Love You Forever: A Hilariously Creepy Bedtime Read
As a mom of four, I’m always on the lookout for books that both entertain and resonate with my children. When Licha recommended Love You Forever by Robert Munsch—a book I assumed was just another cutesy bedtime story—I knew I had to see what all the fuss was about. So, I gathered my 7, 10, and 12-year-olds for a family reading night (unfortunately, the 15-year-old was still recovering from his latest gaming binge). Little did I know, this “baby book” would deliver a wildly unsettling experience!
The story starts innocuously enough, with a mother rocking her baby and singing the sweet, repetitive refrain:
“I’ll love you forever.
I’ll like you for always,
As long as I’m living,
My baby you’ll be.”
As my girls snuggled closer, showing their excitement (around 5% interest, truth be told), my son settled in with a skeptical eyebrow raised—classic teenager! But then the plot took a wacky turn: the baby grows up, makes a mess in the bathroom, and shockingly, the mother is expressing her frustrations about his chaos! Finally, a line we could all relate to!
But hold on—cue the dramatic gasp! When the mom starts creeping across the floor in the kid’s room to rock him back to sleep, the giggles turned to outright laughter and a smattering of squeals. It was a mixed bag of reactions that had the room buzzing. My 10-year-old exclaimed, “What the heck is she doing?!” while my 7-year-old just snuggled in tighter—clearly uncertain about this “creepy lady” aspect of the tale.
As the boy grows into a teenager, our family couldn’t contain our disbelief. “Mom’s not crawling on the floor to rock me!” my son blurted out, and we all chuckled, realizing just how absurd (and funny) the situation was. The illustrations by Sheila McGraw perfectly paired the bizarre plot with their goofy, expressive style, amplifying our collective incredulity with every turn of the page.
The book wraps up with the mother being elderly and the son finally embracing the strange tradition she started, albeit with a hint of humor stirred in. My son rolled his eyes and made gagging noises as the mother could no longer complete her song, ready to toss the book aside in favor of something “less creepy.” Yet it struck a chord, illuminating that bittersweet nature of love that grows, shifts, and sometimes becomes hilariously awkward.
In the end, Love You Forever turned our usual routine into a night full of laughter, existential questions, and a perfect reminder of the everlasting bond between a parent and child—complexities included! I recommend this wild ride to parents of kids aged 5-12 who appreciate humor in the chaos of parenting. And for parents like me who sometimes feel panicked at the thought of their kids growing up too quickly, this book is a heartwarming reminder that love transcends even the creepiest traditions (just maybe not the crawling).
Will this be an every-night read? Probably not. But it’s definitely a memory I’ll cherish—and a great way to keep my kids on their toes!
