I strongly recommend this book. A good story, combine with cute illustrations.

What a truly enjoyable, beautifully illustrated story! It tells the story of Gabby Ann going to bed and wanting kisses and hugs not only from her Mum but also from her Dad who is working far away. This happens to many children for many reasons, for instance if one of their parent’s is in the armed services as happened to members of the author's family. In those situations a story like this will really help reassure the child that, although far away, their parent still loves them and is sending kisses and hugs to them. The story is beautifully and sensitively written, the adventures of the kisses and hugs will have the child smiling and when they eventually reach the sleeping child is delightful.

A charming book that whilst terrific for all children will be of particular relevance to any who have a parent away from home for any reason. The colourful illustrations enhance the tale and although Gabby Ann is a girl, the adventures with different animals will appeal to children regardless of gender.Xs and Os for Gabby Ann

Thanks to the author and publishers, too, for letting me read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Absolutely delightful. What a wonderful way to make bedtime happy for a child whose parent is away and to make her know she's loved regardless of the distance! The best stories come from one's own experience and I love that the author has drawn from her own to create this book. The illustrations are fantastic! Thank you!

I love the whole vibe of this book. Who doesn't like to be tucked in by someone you love and smothered in kisses and hugs before settling down for a good night's sleep? That is the most perfect part of bedtime is it not?

Gabby Ann loves that part of her day the best too and asks her mom again and again for just one more kiss and hug. Lovingly, mom obliges, and then Gabby Ann asks about her daddy? She knows he is far, far away working, but every night he faithfully sends her hugs and kisses to let her know she is precious to him and he is thinking about her. Gabby Ann gets fidgety and anxious waiting for those kisses and hugs to arrive. Mom assures her again and again that daddy didn't forget, encourages her to be patient and when she is asleep they will arrive. She affirms to her they are on their way even now.

This is such a fun adventure to follow those happy hugs and kisses from a loving daddy to their destination... his sweet Gabby Ann. His coveted gifts are launched on a spirited global rendezvous with the help of many participants who willingly take it upon themselves to have those love snippets delivered. Every child who reads this book will become aware of the love and commitment of a parent towards them and the lengths they will go to deliver that love.

The illustrations are perfect. The colours are bold, vibrant and they are full of detail and energy. They pull the reader into the story and you can feel the synergy of everyone as they happily, freely volunteer and get one Daddy's hugs and kisses to his darling little girl, his, Gabby Ann.

This book is particularly good for children who have a parent (in this story, it's a dad) who goes on a lot of business trips, or are away for extended periods (eg soldier / marine dads) or dads who live far away for whatever reason. The story tells kids that even though their parent is far away, they can still send their love all the way to reach their children, and in this story the love is sent through hugs and kisses in the shape of floating Xs and Os that make their journey across the world to little Gabby Ann.

* About the Story: It's a sweet story inspired by the author's personal experiences with having a father (and the father of her own kids) being away from home for extended periods of time.
The story teaches children to recognise different animals (who help the Xs and Os to find their way to Gabby Ann), and it's written in a way that has some repeated phrases which I feel may appeal to young children so they can complete the well-known phrases with you as you read.

* About the writing: It conveys the story clearly but the writing itself could have had a bit more pizzazz. It makes some good use of alliteration but I did feel that something was missing in making the writing really be amazing. At times the rhythm of the writing felt a little "off". Perhaps the writing would have been improved if it was rhyming.

* About the text design: I don't usually comment about the text design but I did notice in this book that it felt like the font and the way the writing was integrated into the book didn't fit well with the artwork, which I found a little bit grating. This is a minor point which I'm sure children won't notice, but as a graphic designer myself, I definitely would have integrated the writing a little differently had I been designing this book.

* About the artwork: Amazingly beautiful artwork. Absolutely A+++ in this department. The drawings are exceptionally cute, the colours are bright, vibrant and cheerful, and the whole feeling of the art is very feel-good. The illustrator, Mike Motz, is very talented.

Gabby Ann loves bedtime, and that's rather unusual for young children. But Gabby has a very good reason, as it's the time for lots and lots of goodnight kisses and hugs. Sadly, her dad has to work far away and can't be there by her bedside for her evening cuddle.
But no need to worry for cute wee Gabby, her dad has already sent his love for her, in the form of sweet Xs and Os travelling through the air.
They make their way through the rainforest and along a watering hole, they travel through the Arctic and swim in the ocean and they meet all sorts of exotic animals on their journey.
Finally a pelican offers to fly them all the way to Gabby's house. There the pet dog is already waiting in the garden and they grab his collar and hold on tight, as the dog races all the way to the little girl's bedroom.
With Gabby by now being fast asleep, will she notice the Xs and Os have finally found her?

It's a warm hearted story, to which I can quite well relate. I'm not in the armed forces, as was the case for the author's father and gave the inspiration to write the book, but still, I have to work on assignments all over the globe and know what it feels like to be away from my family. It's always particularly hard, when small children are involved.
Besides work, there are many other reasons, why a parent has to spend time away from home. Maybe they are in hospital or have to go and care for an elderly relative.

The illustrations are adorable, they are vivid and colourful and children will love to look at them.

To turn the hugs and kisses into characters in form of Xs and Os is a wonderful idea and will definitely appeal to young children.
A beautiful way to ensure a child, your parent's love will find you, wherever you are and no matter how far away they are.

This is an adorable story for little ones that shows the importance of a father's (or parent's) love. I loved how the hugs and kisses travelled from far away to find Gabby Ann. It was quite a journey and teaches kids about different areas of the world while you wait to see where the Xs and Os go next. Such a precious bedtime story of love and reassurance. I strongly recommend this book to anyone with little ones...especially those with a parent that travels far away for work or perhaps lives far away.

I love this book. My husband used to be in the Marine Corps and gone for long periods of time. I wish this book had been around then so that my kids would understand better. Very cute book!

That was cute. If Wyatt was gone for any length of time, I'd read this to Kait.

Can't download to my tablet..

cute book. i like the thought of the storyline and what it is trying to portray, it just seemed a little long.

Really enjoyed this story, my daughter will love it as she gets older too. She will be able to connect to Gabby Ann when she is also away from her daddy.

Immensely cute and heart felt "Xs and Os for Gabby Ann" tells the story of Gabby Ann a little girl that loves hugs and kisses and can't get enough of them. Her mother always gives them when Gabby Ann is about to go to bed, but Gabby Ann's father is not at home because of his job. This however doesn't stop him from sending his little girl all the love she deserves.
Through mountains and valleys, rivers and seas, Gabby Ann's father's Xs and Os fly trying to reach her. Showing off their adventures as they try to reach their destination this is a cute book to share with all children who have a parent that works far away and known they are loved. The illustrations are cute and soft and children will feel the love in the books pages as well.
A fantastic bedtime book.

What a great little book for children who have a parent away from home. Whether they be working, in the military or away for business or a conference this book assures children that they are loved by their parents.

Gabby Ann's father is away and every night he sends her hugs and kisses. In this story they travel across the world and meet up with all sorts of animals that help them reach their location. From monkeys to giraffes, dophins to pelicans and finally to a neighbourhood dog, they travel to Gabby Ann's house where mother lets them in to rest on Gabby Ann's cheek. Even though Gabby Ann is worried that the hugs and kisses will not arrive, her mother assures her that she needs to go to bed and to sleep and they will arrive.

This is a beautifully illustrated book that children will absolutely love.

I loved the story. We have a lot of students who have parents who are apart from their kids for a long time. I was less than impressed with the illustrations. They seemed rather ordinary and lacked any special spark. However, the story is good enough to overcome them and I definitely put it on my to-buy list.

This was super cute. The pictures are fun and sweet. Little Gabby Ann has a hard time going to sleep with Daddy so far away. But Mommy assures her that his X's and O'x are on their way! It's a perfect story for any child who has a parent far away, especially if they are gone often. As soon as we read this my kids said, "Hey, that's like Dad!" My 6 year old loved reading this over and over and my 3 year old really enjoyed X's and O's adventures. They both kept trying to repeat the song. It is a little bit long winded for the youngest of my kids, my toddler was done a little more than halfway through. One I definitely recommend to someone who's parent is gone for bedtime.