SOMETIMES WHEN I’M WORRIED
From the Sometimes When series
by Deborah Serani illustrated by Kyra Teis
A child is guided by a loving family through ways to cope with worry in Serani’s picture book, part of the Sometimes When series.
The narrator, a child with wavy red hair and pink cheeks, notices that when they worry, sometimes they feel scared and can’t calm down. Daddy makes a suggestion: “He says I might feel calmer if I find something I can control.” Daddy offers a choice: belly breathing or counting to 10. The choice and the practice both make the child feel better. On each page, as the child expresses their worry, the family offers acceptance, choices, and encouragement, validating the narrator’s experiences and guiding them through it. The author, a psychologist and professor at Adelphi University, offers spare but fluid text that reflects a child’s perspective. The narrator’s family offers a supportive community at every turn, making the book reassuring for young readers. Lengthy text at the back guides caregivers on how to best support their worriers—and how to care for their own worries as part of that process. Teis’ highly-textured full-color paintings allow readers to sink into the scene; the pacing and presence of happy thoughts to contrast the worry make each page feel safe and comforting. The soft tone of both the text and illustrations gives the book the ambiance of a warm hug.
An empowering, soothing aid for children combatting worry.