By Worry?? Who worries?? Not me … *cough cough cough* … yeah, right! I wish that were true.
Those of you that know me well are very aware that I could teach the art of worrying. I suppose that is nothing to brag about, but lo and behold, I wouldn’t want anyone to be under false impressions about me. Unfortunately, worrying seems to one of the crosses I bear. That said, today’s book is a great one to consider reading with your worrisome child and maybe even another adult!
TITLE: The Worry Box
AUTHOR: Suzanne Chiew
ILLUSTRATOR: Sean Julian
PUBLISHER: Tiger Tales © 2018 PB 4 – 8 years
THEMES: Worrying; Friendship
FIRST TWO PAGES:
High up on his thinking spot, Murray Bear looked out across the valley. “There you are!” called his sister, Molly. It’s time for lunch.”
“I’m not hungry,” Murray sighed.
“You’re always hungry!” giggled Molly. “Come on, or we’ll be late meeting Oliver at the waterfall.”
“I don’t want to go!” sniffled Murray. “What if the waterfall is too LOUD? What if it’s so BIG that I get swept away!”
SUMMARY (from book jacket):
Murray Bear is supposed to go to the waterfall with his sister, Molly, to meet a friend, but Murray is worried. “What if it’s too LOUD?” he cries. “What if I get swept away!” So Molly tells him about her special worry box. “When I’m worried about something,: she says, “I write it down, then put it inside.” She offers to help make one for Murray, and he takes it on their journey – but will it really help?
WHAT I LIKE:
This story has a very gentle way of helping readers who are worriers to harness their feelings and give those feelings boundaries thus setting them free to experience new things and make new friends. As Murray and readers learn, he’s not the only one in the forest who worries, and therefore shares what he learned from his sister. This story has a nice emotional arc and resolution.
Though, as Christians, we know that worries really need to be left at the foot of the throne of Jesus, The Worry Box gives children a concrete way to deal with their fears and worries.
You can find other picture book reviews from Perfect Picture Book Friday at Susanna Hill’s blog.
ACTIVITES:
Design a worry box with your child. Encourage him/her to write down the fear/worry, then pray to Jesus for help and finally drop his worries into the box.
