''Love You Forever'' is a 1986
children's picture book written by
Robert Munsch
Robert Norman Munsch (born June 11, 1945) is an American-Canadian children's author.
Personal life and career
Robert Munsch was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on June 11, 1945. He grew up in a family of 9 children. He graduated from Fordha ...
and illustrated by Sheila McGraw. The story centers on a mother who sings a lullaby to her son at each stage of his life. During his childhood, she becomes frustrated with his rebellious nature, yet always sings to him after he falls asleep. The mother and son grow older, with the former becoming sick due to old age, and one day unable to sing the lullaby. The son sings the rest for her, and after her death, begins to sing the lullaby to his newborn daughter.
Story
The story details the cycle of life by chronicling the experiences of a young son and his mother throughout the course of the boy's life and describing the exasperating behavior exhibited by him throughout his youth. Despite her occasional aggravation caused by her son's behavior, the mother nonetheless visits his bedroom nightly to cradle him in her arms, and sing a brief lullaby promising to always love him. After her son enters adulthood and moves across town, his elderly mother occasionally sneaks into his bedroom at night to croon her customary lullaby. However, she gradually grows old and frail, and her grown son visits his feeble, sickly mother for the final time. When the son first arrives, his mother tries to sing her lullaby to him, but she is too weak to finish. The son then cradles his mother in his arms and sings an altered rendition of her lullaby in reciprocation for the unconditional love that she had shown him throughout his life, vowing to always love her in return. After returning home in a scene implying the death of his mother, the son cradles his newborn daughter and sings his mother's signature lullaby for her, implying that the cycle will continue.
Creation
The book was written after Munsch and his wife had two
stillborn
Stillbirth is typically defined as fetal death at or after 20 or 28 weeks of pregnancy, depending on the source. It results in a baby born without signs of life. A stillbirth can result in the feeling of guilt or grief in the mother. The term i ...
babies. They have since adopted three children.
Reception
''Love You Forever'' was listed fourth on the 2001 ''
Publishers Weekly
''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of B ...
'' All-Time Bestselling Children's Books list for paperbacks at 6,970,000 copies (not including the 1,049,000 hardcover copies). In 2001,
Maria Shriver
Maria Owings Shriver (born November 6, 1955)
is an American journalist, author, a member of the Kennedy family, former First Lady of California, and the founder of the nonprofit organization The Women's Alzheimer's Movement. She was married to ...
wrote in ''
O, The Oprah Magazine
''O, The Oprah Magazine'', also known simply as ''O'', is an American monthly magazine founded by talk show host Oprah Winfrey and Hearst Communications.
Overview
It was first published on April 19, 2000. , its average paid circulation was ...
'': "I have yet to read this book through without crying. It says so much about the circle of life, youth, parenting, and our responsibility for our parents as we grow older. The message is so simple yet so profound. ''Love You Forever'' is a great gift for anyone with a child, or even for your own parents." Based on a 2007 online poll, the
National Education Association
The National Education Association (NEA) is the largest labor union in the United States. It represents public school teachers and other support personnel, faculty and staffers at colleges and universities, retired educators, and college stude ...
listed the book as one of its "Teachers' Top 100 Books for Children."
Some readers dislike the portion of the story where the mother sneaks into her grown son's home. One ''
Publishers Weekly
''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of B ...
'' reviewer states that ''Love You Forever'' is a divisive children's book. "Either it moves you to tears and you love it, or it makes your skin crawl and you detest it..." A commentator wrote "it's either a touching account of a mother's unending love or the ultimate helicopter parenting gone bad."
Media appearances
The book is prominently featured in the ''
Friends
''Friends'' is an American television sitcom created by David Crane and Marta Kauffman, which aired on NBC from September 22, 1994, to May 6, 2004, lasting ten seasons. With an ensemble cast starring Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa ...
'' episode "
The One with the Cake
The tenth and final season of ''Friends'', an American sitcom created by David Crane and Marta Kauffman, premiered on NBC on September 25, 2003. ''Friends'' was produced by Bright/Kauffman/Crane Productions, in association with Warner Bros. ...
". In the episode,
Joey
Joey may refer to:
People
*Joey (name)
Animals
* Joey (marsupial), an infant marsupial
* Joey, a Blue-fronted Amazon parrot who was one of the Blue Peter pets
Film and television
* ''Joey'' (1977 film), an American film directed by Horac ...
performs a dramatic reading of the book at Emma's first birthday, moving everyone to tears. Inspired by this, Joey later decides to recite the book as a dramatic monologue at an audition.
The book was read by Madeleine Stowe to Tori Barban in the movie ''
The Christmas Hope'', the third movie in ''
The Christmas Shoes'' trilogy.
Playwright
Topher Payne wrote an alternative ending to the story, in which the mother is forced to recognize the son's need for personal space, and they instead agree to share their time doing things together.
In the season eleven episode “Decision Time” of the tv series
Heartland
Heartland or Heartlands may refer to:
Businesses and organisations
* Heartland Bank, a New Zealand-based financial institution
* Heartland Inn, a chain of hotels based in Iowa, United States
* Heartland Alliance, an anti-poverty organization i ...
, Amy reads the book to her baby.
In the ''
Manifest
Manifest may refer to:
Computing
* Manifest file, a metadata file that enumerates files in a program or package
* Manifest (CLI), a metadata text file for CLI assemblies
Events
* Manifest (convention), a defunct anime festival in Melbourne, Aus ...
'' episode "All-Call," Eden is briefly shown reading the book.
References
{{Reflist
External links
Audio file of the book, read by the author
1986 children's books
Canadian children's books
Canadian picture books