For whatever mood your child is in
Celia
Author: Christelle Vallat
Illustrator: Stephanie Augusseau
Publisher: Peter Pauper Press, Inc.
Recommended Age Range: 4 to 8
In a town full of worries and sadness lives Celia, an elderly woman, who every Sunday – for the price of one seed – listens to each person’s problems; lightening their hearts. Then, with magic of her own, Celia bestows each seed with beauty bringing color and joy where once there was none. Yet, when Celia discovers a lost seed, she realizes her work is not finished; not until a young boy can feel happiness again. So, with patience, persistence, and love, Celia works her magic and, in doing so, plants the “seeds” of friendship – for both. ☺ Wonderful!
Awards: United States Board on Books for Young People (USBBY) 2015 Outstanding International Books List
Happy
Author: Mies Van Hout
Illustrator: Mies Van Hout
Publisher: Lemniscaat USA LLC
Recommended Age Range: 2+
Happy is a simple, and wonderfully illustrated, book showing a range of emotions all displayed by colorful fish. During story time, children love to show their many fish-inspired faces, including the proud one, the nervous one, the angry one, the jealous one, the loving one, the astonished one, and the curious one (followed by lots of fingers to the temples and “hmmmms” ☺), among many others. This is a great book to read at home. Grab the camera! Those faces are priceless!
Awards: One of 10 Titles for Dutchreading Days 2013; Leespluim Award December 2011
How Are You Peeling?
Author: Saxon Freymann
Illustrator: Joost Elffers
Publisher: Scholastic Inc.
Recommended Age Range: 4 to 8
This is one of those books that has to be seen. How vegetables, in all their shapes and sizes, can show emotions is a pretty amazing testament to creativity. Rhyming text complements the images.
In My Heart: A Book of Feelings
Author: Jo Witek
Illustrator: Christine Roussey
Publisher: Abrams Appleseed, an Imprint of Abrams
Recommended Age Range: 3 to 6
In My Heart captures, through child-like drawings and wonderful metaphors, the multitude of feelings all children experience. With color, humor, and a lot of heart, this book is the perfect way to understand what makes us human.
Mean Soup
Author: Betsy Everitt
Illustrator: Betsy Everitt
Publisher: HMH Books for Young Readers
Recommended Age Range: 3 to 6
Oh, those bad days, when nothing seems to go right; they’re the worst. Well, Horace, in Mean Soup, has a REALLY bad one, but his mom has the perfect “recipe” to fix it. A brilliant book that may have you making your own “Mean Soup.”
Awards: American Institute of Graphic Arts (AIGA) Book Show; Booklist Editors’ Choice for 1992; Fiera di Bologna Graphics Prize for Children and Young Adults; Indiana’s Young Hoosier Book Award List for 1994-1995
Sam: the most scaredy-cat kid in the whole world
Author: Mo Willems
Illustrator: Mo Willems
Publisher: Hyperion Books for Children
Recommended Age Range: 3 to 7
Website
Today I feel…An Alphabet of Feelings
Author: Madalena Moniz
Illustrator: Madalena Moniz
Publisher: Abrams Appleseed, an imprint of Abrams
Recommended Age Range: 3 to 5
Words and your Heart
Author: Kate Jane Neal
Illustrator: Kate Jane Neal
Publisher: Feiwel and Friends
Recommended Age Range: 2 to 6
Awards: North Somerset Teachers’ Book Award