Don’t Hug Doug (He doesn’t like it) is Carrie Finison’s second picture book and I’m looking forward to reading her first book because this one was so good! It’s delightful. It really is! It takes a very unsure topic, brings some light and humor to it, and makes it matter to you, the reader. Now to get into the text.
You can hug lots of things: a pug, a slug (ewww!), a valentine, even a Frankenstein (urrrr!), but you cannot hug Doug.
Don’t worry though! It’s not that Doug doesn’t like you. He just doesn’t like hugs and he has his reasons. He even illustrates why he doesn’t like hugs, through the drawings from Daniel Wiseman. There is no question why Doug does not like hugs.
It doesn’t matter if it’s his birthday or how much YOU want to hug him. Don’t hug Doug.
“I’m just not a hugger.”
I see you, Doug. I see you. I’m not much of a hugger myself and so the lesson of asking others if they want to hug is one I know well.
Finison teaches this exact example of asking others. Ask Doug’s best friend. Ask an identical twin. Ask the squishy baby. You can even ask Doug’s potbellied pig. Doug says “yes” and explains how to hug her well.
Doug may not want hugs, but he is awesome at high-fives! He is the master! He even has a high-five for your kids.
“Go ahead — ask!”
Don’t Hug Doug is light on text, which makes it a fun and quick read. Read it enough times and your own kids will probably memorize it and be able to read it themselves quite easily. It has some rhyme schemes throughout the pages and it’s use of alliteration gives it a fun tongue twister feel (not a difficult feel). Your kids will definitely giggle as you read the words and share the pictures. The illustrations are big with bold colors and has an almost comic-book style in the layout. It’ll keep your kids interested as you turn each page.
Doug is so likable because he is kind, honest, and he makes it okay to not like hugs. He’s not doing it to be mean or hurtful. He just doesn’t like hugs. Finison uses this line or a form of it throughout and the repetition doesn’t belabor the point because there are so many others and things to hug between Doug reminding us not to hug him, “Thanks, but no thanks!” In fact, I would say the point isn’t about not hugging Doug - he does actually like hugs, but only from a certain person in a certain way - it’s about respecting other people and their boundaries. Some of love hugs. Some of us are okay with hugs. Some of us prefer hugs only from certain people. Some of us love the high-five, fist-bump, secret handshake. Then there are some of us, like Doug, who don’t like hugs.