Who Feels Scared?

Everybody feels afraid sometimes—like Jack and his friends Ravi and Kevin when they have a sleepover. This reassuring book shows children that they can cope with their fears and be brave. 

Our Emotions and Behavior series
The Our Emotions and Behavior series uses cheerful brightly illustrated stories to help kids understand how their emotions and actions are related—and how they can learn to manage both. At the end of each book, a two-page series of pictures invites kids to tell a story in their own words. A special section for adults suggests discussion questions and ideas for guiding children to talk about their feelings.

Sue Graves is a former teacher and a published author. She writes fiction and nonfiction for children from preschool to high school. Sue is married and has four children and two grandchildren. She loves playing golf, painting watercolors, and walking in the countryside around her home in England.

Desideria Guicciardini was born in Florence, Italy. She illustrated her first children's book in 1977 and likes illustrating stories set in the past or in fantastic make-believe worlds. She lives in Milan, Italy, with her husband and two sons.

"Engaging cartoons and the message about finding workarounds should prove practical."—Publishers Weekly

"These are excellent titles for children who need help expressing their feelings and they will be a bonus in any guidance counselor’s arsenal." — School Library Journal

"Exuberant color illustrations bring to life simple stories about ordinary children interacting with their friends at school or at play. . . .The Our Emotions and Behavior series is enthusiastically recommended for parents as well as school and library children’s collections."—Midwest Book Review

Who Feels Scared?

BOOKLIST, 10/1/2011

Everyone is scared of something, and what scares one person might be enjoyed by another. That’s the message delivered by this gentle yet spirited entry in the Our Emotions and Behavior series. Buddies Kevin and Ravi are spending the night at their friend Jack’s house, and, as with all sleepovers, startling things seem to wait behind each corner. But that lion’s roar is really just the dog barking, and that thump in the closet just a toy. In a nice twist, Jack’s sister drops by to illustrate that older people get scared, too—she was afraid of flying until she tried listening to music on the plane. Guicciardini’s cartoon illustrations give the lesson learning a zany edge, especially when the kids are imagining nonexistent monsters. Graves ends her book with a wordless two-page story of Tom’s first night away from home, inviting parents and teachers to have kids tell Tom’s story based on what they learned from Kevin and Ravi. Not a bad book to have on hand for anxious little ones stretching their wings.

"Titles in the series capture the big emotions that all kids feel. The stories are perfect for young readers."—Imagination Soup

"The books would be helpful for teaching children [the concepts of rules, sharing, fears, and sadness] as well as beginning a dialogue with children about them. Teachers and school counselors will want to consider adding these to their library as they will undoubtedly be a good resource in classrooms."—Chris Singer, BookDads.com