My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Note: Review of Advance Reader Copy | Book Releases on 6/5/18
“Everyone feels sad sometimes. Even Flamingos,” and if you’re lucky, you might have friends like the kindhearted girl and the concerned potato in the book I’m Sad to help you when you’re down.
I can’t help but to be encouraged by this story because, yeah, sometimes we feel sad and its okay. I look at the flamingo as courageous because it was brave enough to say that it was feeling sad. That alone isn’t easy. Sure, we all have experienced sadness, but we don’t always find a safe space to verbalize such feelings even though it is healthy for us to do so. The flamingo asks great questions too. Will I always feel this way? Why do sad things happen? The girl and the potato are great listeners and they offer timely advice when they see their friend could use some cheering up. This is why friendship means the world to me. Just knowing you have someone you can laugh and cry with is everything. This book is a gem and I know it will inspire you and any child you share it with in a meaningful way.
This is the second book in the I’m Series. With the first being, I’m Bored (2012). Both were written by Michael Ian Black and illustrated by Debbie Ridpath Ohi who does a phenomenal job of communicating each characters’ feelings through their facial expressions and body language. One thing to note that my students and I really appreciate is that the text color matches the coloring of the characters. It makes it that much easier to tell who is speaking when. I usually wait to point this out to students as I want to see their excitement when they realize that is what’s happening. They are great text detectives. I look forward to adding this book to our K-5 library in June.
Be sure to visit Simon & Schuster’s site for teaching resources here.
Also check out illustrator Debbie Ridpath Ohi’s blog post about I’m Sad. It includes sample images from the book and details about the I’m Sad Facebook page. Go check it out here.
Shout-Outs
Michael Ian Black | http://www.simonandschuster.com/authors/Michael-Ian-Black/44260805
Debbie Ridpath Ohi | http://debbieohi.com/
Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
An imprint of Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing Division
http://www.simonandschuster.com/
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