The genre of this book is fantasy because of the human-like hippopotamus'. The setting of this book is in the hippo's house, and throughout a day, because it talks about lunch, and bed time. This story would be great for primary readers.

In this delightful tale, we see Bertie and his father involved in the routine daily activities of any family. Bertie is a young hippo who wants to be just like his daddy. When Bertie's daddy begins the day with coffee and a newspaper, Bertie also wants to have coffee and read the newspaper. When Bertie's dad is shaving, Bertie wants to shave too, and later at nap time Bertie doesn't want to sleep, he wants to stay up just like daddy does. The father patiently responds to each of Bertie's requests by saying, "when you're older" or "when you're bigger", each time providing Bertie with small ways he can participate and feel accomplished.

In each step of Bertie and his dad's day we see every toddler's desire for independence, to grow, to learn new things, and at the same time emulate their parent's behavior. The father in this story does a wonderful job of acknowledging his child's desire to grow up while steering him toward age appropriate ways of participating. Allowing a small child to participate and help in ways they can succeed lets them feel capable and confident.

The illustrations are colorful, fun and active and give the reader an amusing view of Bertie's day with dad. Bertie's father is shown shopping, cooking and caring for his child, images not typically seen in children's books. This makes Bertie: Just Like Daddy a great book for single fathers, stay at home dads, and two dad families. Review by Book Dads ( )