Title: Small Things
Author: Mel Tregonning
Genre: Picture book
Publisher: Pajama Press
Source: Publisher
Release Date: March 1, 2018
Rating: ★★★★★
Goodreads Synopsis:
On the cusp of having everything slip from his grasp, a young boy has to find a way to rebuild his sense of self. An ordinary boy in an ordinary world. With no words, only illustrations, Small Things tells the story of a boy who feels alone with worries but who learns that help is always close by. An extraordinary story, told simply and with breath taking beauty.
Review:
When I was a kid, I didn’t like picture books without words. However, now I know that the pictures can tell a more powerful story without words. This is the case with this book.
This book tells the important story of childhood anxiety. Children are not always diagnosed with anxiety, though it is very common. The main character in this story has little creatures or demons that are slowly eating away at him, until he is surrounded by them. His sister speaks to him one day and shows him that she has the same problems. Then, he notices that other kids at school also have the same problems, but he didn’t notice them when he was only thinking of his own problems.
The illustrations in this book are beautiful. The pictures look like detailed pencil sketches. The depiction of his demons were much more prominent though the images than they would have been with words. The number or demons increased so much that they eventually filled the entire page. This is a great, honest way to show how the demons of anxiety can consume a child or adult.
I loved this picture book! It is a powerful story for adults or children.
Jill's Book Blog 
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