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Reviewed by:
  • The Happy Book by Andy Rash
  • Deborah Stevenson, Editor
Rash, Andy The Happy Book; written and illus. by Andy Rash. Viking, 2019 [40p]
Trade ed. ISBN 978-0-451-47125-3 $17.99
E-book ed. ISBN 978-0-698-16814-5 $10.99
Reviewed from galleys R 4-8 yrs

Amid the sunny yellow pages of the Happy Book, happy Camper is hanging out with his happy clam friend, and Camper delights in eating the friendship cake [End Page 307] Clam baked. Uh-oh—he ate the whole cake, Clam wanted some too, and now Clam has gone through a door to the blue pages of the Sad Book (where he hangs out with his sad friend, Trombone). When Camper can’t convince Clam to join him back in the Happy Book, he goes through another door to the red Angry Book (where he’s sitting with his new friend Wet Hen). Now both Camper and Clam are scared they won’t be friends anymore, so they slip into the green Scared Book (where they meet—who else?—Cat). Eventually Camper, Clam, and co. all find their place in the multicolored Feelings Book, where they accept a range of feelings while still enjoying their time together. This is a jaunty and playful look at emotions that invites engagement and never overcomplicates its concept, instead making emotional transitions matter-of-fact and everyday things to negotiate. Kids probably won’t get all the humorous wordplay, but that’s okay; explanations of the figures of speech could provide a useful secondary focus for kids looking for a lateral approach to the main topic. The vigorous cartooning, with speech-bubble dialogue and graphic-novel-style panel breaks, provides plenty of comedy in its own right and also helps keep the emotional discussion nonthreatening. Like Bang’s When Sophie Gets Angry . . . Really, Really Angry (BCCB 4/99) this will be an excellent opener for kids and adults to talk together about feelings.

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