The Don’t Worry Book

“Sometimes you worry.” Figures rendered in Parr’s bright, exuberant art with markerlike outlines demonstrate how and when worry impacts them. For example, “when you are trying to sleep. Or when you go to the bathroom.” The children in the scenes readily convey their emotional states, with downturned mouths, tear-stained faces, and expressions of distress and exasperation. But there are ways to help assuage worry, Parr assures readers. “When you worry, try doing something to keep yourself busy, like talking to someone special”—a child with arms wide open greets a pet fish in a jug-shaped aquarium. Another child wears a superhero cape and recommends “thinking about all the things that make you strong.” Anxiety comes and goes, Parr says, and readers never need feel alone in their concerns. Ages 5–up. [em](June) [/em]