Spring 2018:

Thank you to Ian De Haes, Flyaway Books, and Library thing for this honest review advanced copy of "Simon and the Big, Bad, Angry, Beasts: A Book About Anger."

A bright, colorful and straight to the point book about what anger can both look like to children, and how powerful it can be when it doesn't abate. It's a short story about what happens when you continuing to get your way, through your anger (which is manifested as multiple fantastic beasts in the book), and how we push people away through it.

It comes full circle in the recognizing what these two things to and the lacks they leave in your own life, as well as how to fix it again. I definitely will be picking up a copy of this to send for my young nieces and nephews. ( )

Note: I accessed a digital review copy of this book through Edelweiss. ( )

Simon gets angry and ferocious monsters appear! He thinks that it is great to have such scary creatures scare away the things that make him mad until no one wants to play with him anymore. Simon has to learn to calm down in order to find friends again. I LOVE this picture book! I think it is a great way to get children to visualize anger and how we show our anger to others when we don't realize it as well as how to calm down. I also enjoyed the chorus, "It was great, it was marvelous, it was magical..." Students will enjoy reading this at home and at school. ( )

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. My thoughts and opinions are my own. Any quotes I use are from an unpublished copy and may not reflect the finished product.

We loved this one! Simon and the Big, Bad, Angry Beasts personified anger and offered a more understandable perspective for children. My son thought it was interesting that the boy's anger could change shape depending on the situation, and we had fun discussing what his animal would be. We both liked the illustrations and thought they really added to the overall experience (especially at the end when the dragon starts dissolving into butterflies). We will definitely be adding this one to our shelves!

Normally, I don't read the teaching guide in the back of a book, but this one was actually helpful. My son was able to express himself in new and unique ways that I think will benefit us both in the future. He even surprised me by doing the breathing exercise!

Originally posted at Do You Dog-ear? on January 17, 2019. ( )

Simon and the Big, Bad, Angry Beasts is a story about anger and how to deal with it. Simon is a boy who expresses his anger in harmful ways. Each time he becomes angry a beast appears and they become bigger and meaner while lashing out at his friends and family. At first Simon likes how this makes him feel, but eventually no one wants to be around him. He does not like being alone, so he makes the decision to get rid of the anger beasts. It takes a while to figure it out, but he is finally successful.

This book would be a great one for parents, caregivers or teachers to read to their children about how anger can affect our relationships and how to deal with their anger in constructive ways. I would have liked to see the dealing with part given a bit more book time, but if you use the tips at the back of the book to discuss and practice dealing with anger, it should work. The illustrations add to the story by visually presenting Simon's anger in a way that children should understand (in the form of different animals). I love the ending with the dragon dissolving into butterflies. There are several tips and things to try with children mentioned at the back of the book. The publisher generously presented me with a copy of this book via Netgalley. ( )