No More Tantrums

September 15, 2017
A companion to Bye-Bye Binky and I Use the Potty (both 2016) aims to help little kids take charge of big feelings. The cover art, rendered digitally in a limited palette of coral, brown, black, and white, contradicts the title right off the bat, as it depicts a child of color with light brown skin and shoulder-length, black, straight hair in midtantrum, her mouth agape, limbs rigid, eyes screwed tight, and tears shooting outward. The first-person text looks back to "When I was little and I didn't get my way, I cried." An accompanying series of pictures shows her making demands in various stages of a tantrum. She really loses control when her father, depicted with similar coloring and short, black hair, denies her a cupcake. At the height of her fit, the text shifts to the present tense and asks, "Do I still throw tantrums?" This prompts a page turn that signals how she's found ways to calm herself, since "BIG KIDS DON'T THROW TANTRUMS." She "take[s] a little break," she takes deep breaths in and out, or she might get a hug from her dad. When he tells her again that she must wait for a cupcake, she good-naturedly says "A BIG KID's gotta try!" A satisfying vignette in the backmatter note to caregivers shows her rewarded with a treat after all. Here's hoping for many more titles in this excellent series. (Picture book. 2-4)

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February 1, 2018

Toddler-PreS-In the vein of Bye-Bye Binky and I Use the Potty comes No More Tantrums. The cover image shows a preschooler who is visibly angry and crying with her arms stiffened at her sides. She is the main character and reflects back on the time when she lacked patience. "When I was little and didn't get my way, I cried." Digital images, all in the palette of coral, brown, white and black, portray a very unhappy toddler in an emotional battle with her father; resulting in a full-blown temper tantrum. The protagonist takes us to the present when she is clearly now a "big kid" and has learned to cope with her emotions by counting and breathing slowly. Sometimes she even asks for a hug and that makes her feel so much better. The book ends with a proclamation that "I'm a Big Kid," followed by a message to parents and caregivers from the author about how she used to handle the tantrums of her own son. VERDICT With a topic that almost every parent can relate to, this short and charming tale about toddler tantrums reminds readers that it is normal and that it does indeed get better. This book shows young children that there are alternate ways to deal with big feelings.-Kristen Todd-Wurm, Middle Country Public Library, NY

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