What do you need more? A good book or a good hug? How about a book ABOUT a hug?

I Need a Hug is a year-round reading book, but also a great book for the upcoming holiday of President’s Day! (Oh wait, wrong kind of snake). Kidding aside, it is a sweet Valentine’s Day book. That “prickly thing” (a porcupine) wants a hug! Just a little cuddle! But all the other characters (Joe and Ken and such) rhyme their very strong No! Along with running away. Quickly! But at the end they are all just as quickly coming back! Do they want a hug after all? (Enter another critter looking for a kiss).

Spoiler: It is an obvious ending. The kissing critter is a snake and the porcupine knowing how it feels, finds a way to make them both very happy. Yeah! Everyone lives happily ever after!

Aaron Blabey (creator of Pig the Pug; The Bad Guys series, Thelma the Unicorn and others) has a unique sense of humor. If you are a fan of the others, you might like this one, but something tells me it is a bit tamer. There are a few puns, but the bathroom humor of The Bad Guys is not here.  Yet, the signature style to the illustrations comes out easily enough. The text and art are sparse, but the perfect amount of both is presented. The illustrations, in fact have little to no details. This was not as off-putting as it could have been. The quick read and the lack of details makes you focus on the important parts of what Blabey is saying.