You're Safe With Me

March 1, 2018
It's a dark and stormy night, with wind and thunder and lightning--even the river is rising up--and all the baby animals are scared.Mama Elephant, big and comforting and knowledgeable, tells the little ones about each source of their fear and assures them several times that "You're safe with me." When the baby animals whimper because of the wind, she patiently explains: "He's an old friend of the forest. He brings us seeds from faraway lands." When the loris asks about the thunder's noise, Mama Elephant takes the animals' fears away by telling them that Thunder is "groaning from the weight of the rain." In a little while "she will turn as fluffy as cotton flowers." She explains: "Lightning sparkles in the sky when clouds collide." The explanations are not meant to be scientific but rather poetic and comforting in a lullaby mode. The repetitive structure and lovely language are soothing, but it is the images that are outstanding. Although all the animals featured are found in India, the text is not based on a specific traditional tale, but the intricate, deeply colored digital images, formed with many dots and geometric shapes, evoke kalamkari textile techniques.With its short, rhythmic text and its rich, embellished, shiny pages with animals, flowers, and trees just waiting to be discovered, this is a reassuring yet inventive bedtime book. (Picture book. 4-7)

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Starred review from May 15, 2018
Preschool-G *Starred Review* It's late at night and the baby forest animals are about to go to sleep when the sounds of an approaching storm preclude their slumber. Mama Elephant gathers them in her trunk with the gentle refrain, you're safe with me. While the babies whimper, Mama Elephant assures them that their fears are unfounded, reframing the scary noises as the necessary work of nature. The wailing wind, she calms them, is gentle as a breeze when all the work is done; the thunder only loud because she's laden with rain that brings life; the rumbling river is only grumbling because she's hungry and will soon eat all the shadows in the forest. And thus, Mama Elephant quells the baby animals' fears. Bedtime fears are ancient concerns, and Mama Elephant's voice is timeless. Simultaneously culturally specific and universal, Soundar's eloquent narrative flows seamlessly through Mistry's breathtaking illustrations. Stylized, hand-drawn, and exquisitely detailed, these renditions of forest life fill every page with wonder, perfectly complementing the understated, lyrical whispers of Mama Elephant. Listeners will either be fast asleep by the end of the story, or wide awake, captivated by the art. A stunning, reassuring bedtime story.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2018, American Library Association.)