Parents' Guide to

No Hugs Till Saturday

By Dawn Friedman, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 4+

Loving reminder that giving up hugs isn't easy.

Book Julie Downing Picture Book 2008
No Hugs Till Saturday Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this book.

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What's the Story?

Felix is a pretty big kid and most of the time he remembers the rules. Of course, when he doesn't there are consequences. Reasonable consequences, maybe, but still Felix isn't too happy when his mom lays down the law. This time he's mad enough to make his own rule: No hugs till Saturday! The rest of the book explores Felix's feelings about hugs throughout the day as he gets busy, sometimes needs help, and sometimes feels lonely.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say: Not yet rated
Kids say: Not yet rated

Kids will relate to Felix's burgeoning independence and his sometimes contrary mommy-centric feelings. What preschooler hasn't wanted a little more control around the house? With a straightforward story and detailed illustrations, Downing creates a picture book with a story that's richer than readers might expect.

Parents will catch how complicated Felix's feelings really are and can use the book as a way to discuss their own kids' sometimes contrary emotions. For example, Felix may want to punish his mother just the tiniest little bit for taking away his baseball, but he doesn't want to punish himself. So when he feels jealous seeing his baby sibling getting lots of cuddling, he decides that maybe he can move the "no hugs" date back a day because clearly "Mama was missing his hugs." Parents can point out in the picture that Felix's expression and body language show that maybe it's not just Mommy who's doing the missing.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about what kind of hugs their own family like to give. Do they have funny names for hugs, too? They can also talk about how sometimes kids want hugs and sometimes they don't. Why is this? Maybe families can make a list of times when hugs are welcome (when people are grouchy, for boo-boos, for good nights, for good mornings) and when they aren't (when people are grouchy, when mommy's trying to take a shower, when kids are trying to eat breakfast).

Book Details

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