The Day Leo Said I Hate You! by Robbie Harris (2008)

A misbehaving boy gets tired of hearing "no" from his mother, and finally tells her:  "I hate you!"  He feels terrible and Mommy helps him realize how words can hurt, but can also be forgiven.  As with Molly Bang's When Sophie Gets Angry -- Really, Really Angry, her illustrations reflect the emotions in a powerful way.  The "I hate you" scene almost explodes off the page with Leo's anger; the next page shrinks his figure and shifts from angry red to deep purple to show how sorry he is.  His feelings are even reflected in his toy dinosaur.  The varied colors and sizes of the words on the page encourage print awareness , especially with the many "No's" that stand out in the beginning.

-Steven Engelfried