Review Detail

BIGFOOT'S BIG HEART is a cute picture book about friendship and feeling different. Bigfoot often keeps to himself since people do not seem to understand and call him a monster. Luckily, Bigfoot can write to his other mythical friends who have had similar experiences, such as Nessie, Mothman, and others. When Valentine's day is coming up, Bigfoot knows he wants to do something special, so he creates special Valentines for each of his friends. However, he runs into a scout troop on his way to send them and looses hold of them. With some kindness and understanding, the scouts help to surprise his friends - and in the end, they all have a big surprise for Bigfoot.

What I loved: This was a clever twist on the mythical animals with lessons about how we react to those who seem different from ourselves. The book carefully shows what it feels like to be rejected and the power of kindness. The story works well for Valentine's day, with characters feeling the love of friends old and new. The images were very cute and made the mythical animals seem quite approachable. Children will enjoy seeing ones they know and some they may not yet know (but want to learn about).

What left me wanting more: The text felt a little bit lengthy in places, which will make this work better for older picture book readers. Additionally, I would have loved to have more focus/information on the connection and the scout troop and their members (maybe some more obvious lessons about how to treat those who seem different).

Final verdict: BIGFOOT'S BIG HEART is a cute Valentine's picture book about kindness and being different that will work well for older picture book readers.