Book Review: Thank You, God, For Mommy by Amy Parker

Panda mama and baby are potrayed throughout this board book as a loving family. They have adventures, swing, clean up messes, share a meal with their family and snuggle together to sleep. These are all things mothers do everyday with their little ones. The message throughout is thanking mothers for being mothers.

I wasn't going to post a review for this book, because I didn't care for it. I liked Thank You, God, for Daddy so much better. The rhyme in the verses of the Mommy book were strained. One of the illustrations didn't make sense with the story and seemed out of place. The library only purchased this book, though, so I gave it another look.

The baby in the book is probably one year old. He is walking, but still needs a lot of help from mama. He needs help falling asleep, which leads to my favorite verse in the book:

Thank You, God, for Mommy
And lullabies so sweet-
The rhythm of her beating heart
Can sing me right to sleep.

I probably would have loved this book a year ago, because I would have instantly related to the mama panda. I would have still been rocking my little one to sleep while singing to him. What a difference a year makes?


The main characters of Amy Parker's second board book are lions. The lion cub is a little older than the baby panda. He is a toddler, around 2 years, and he wants to be just like daddy. Bobo and Daddy could be the characters in this book.


I wish I could add the artwork from the first spread. It shows the father and son with capes made from blankets. The next page shows the father measuring the son's height. These are actions that I see happening right now in my son's life. I believe that is the main reason I prefer the Daddy book. However, the verse flows more smoothly than the Mommy book. The rhymes seem more natural. Plus, I find the lions more flattering than the fluffy pandas.