Today’s post is a renewed one; brought back from the archives since it never really saw the light of day when it was first published. So today I wanted to feature these books because I do believe in what the original title said: Why Worry, Enjoy the Music; updated to something closer to what I want to say – A Little Music to Lift Moods & Worry Worries.
While the atmosphere today in many places, especially in my home country of India, is tense, everyone needs to find a way through the worries surrounding them. Music is certainly a wonderful way to relieve stress and help us forget or overcome our worries (or like I say in the title, worry our worries!) so we can work on solutions rather than worry about the problems. I know for myself that listening to different types of music can help me in different ways, no matter how I was feeling prior to the listening.
“Music speaks what cannot be expressed, soothes the mind and gives it rest, heals the heart and makes it whole, flows from heaven to the soul.”
So today’s post features the two books I talked about years ago (almost a decade ago now), with no changes to my thoughts themselves and minimal changes to formatting plus a few extras added today.
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The Books
Is A Worry Worrying You?
Book Info
Title: Is A Worry Worrying You?
Author: Ferida Wolff, Harriet May Savitz
Illustrator: Marie Letourneau
Length: 32 pages
Genre: Children’s Picture Books (4 – 8 years, and up)
Publisher: Tanglewood (April 15, 2005)
Source: Was a digital review copy courtesy of NetGalley
Description: This book addresses children’s worries with humor and imagination, as hilarious scenarios teach kids the use of perspective and the art of creative problem-solving.
My Thoughts
This book is for all ages. Why? Well, a worry worries everyone, no matter how old or young they are. This book, with its quirky illustrations and its rhyming verses – is funny and silly enough to appeal to young kids while at the same time addressing the broad range of issues that can worry them and helping them to conquer their worries.
What is a worry after all? Just an uninvited guest, the book says, and it will stay only as long as you let it. The book lets you know that a worry (any worry, in fact) is not something to be worried about – you can get rid of this uninvited guest in many ways – you can confront it, ignore it, occupy yourself with something else (play with friends for example) and more.
From the book:
“Suppose, just suppose, one hundred elephants come to tea and you discover you don’t have any tea bags. Uh, oh. What will you do with a herd of thirsty elephants? Now that’s a worry! But you can get rid of that worry by offering the elephants lemonade instead.”
In Summary
A great read aloud for kids while parents can point out the more subtle meanings of the verses sometimes but also fun for kids to read by themselves and is a wonderful resource to help kids with their worries)
Book Activities
Tanglewood Press has a cool list of activities to do while/after reading this book. You can download the pdf here.
Get It Here
Amazon || Barnes and Noble || Book Depository || BookShop || IndieBound
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Disclaimer:Thank you to NetGalley for sending me a digital review copy. I was not compensated for my review. My thoughts on this book were in no way influenced by the author or publicist. They are my personal opinions formed when I read this book.
The Little Guitar
Book Info
Title: The Little Guitar
Author: Eric Manos
Illustrator: Eva Serencisova
Length: 40 pages
Genre: Children’s Novels in Verse/Fantasy (8 – 12 years, and up)
Publisher: Dorrance Publishing Co (November 1, 2011)
Source: Was a review copy courtesy of the publishers
Description:. An inspiring tale that is heartbreaking at times, The Little Guitar follows the life of a small, delicate but beautiful guitar as she is created, loved, and at times forgotten.
My Thoughts (I wish I could add a little music!)
‘The little guitar’ is a sweet story that shows the beauty and the gentle yet wonderful power of music and friendship subtly.
The story follows the journey of the guitar as it is lovingly made by a guitar craftsman and enjoyed by young students who visit the shop. Soon the guitar begins her next stage of life when she is bought for a little boy who wants to learn to play the guitar. As he works, she works too – to make wonderful music.
But the boy gives up and the guitar is neglected and forgotten. Just as she worries her life is at an end, an old man rescues her and gives her new life, in the process, he finds himself get a whole new life too.
In Summary
The book is perfect for teaching kids the values of friendship, never giving up, of the beauty of music and of inner beauty.
Get It Here
Amazon || Barnes and Noble || Book Depository || BookShop || IndieBound
Extra, extra, or A Little Music For You!
Well, a little music I added in a previous post (a medley of Eastern and Western music from my son on his piano)
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I received a complimentary copy of The Little Guitar as a member of the Dorrance Publishing Book Review Team.
Quick Notes
I reviewed both books and linked them to reading challenges in 2012. And at the time of reading this book, I was also reading Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne, The Lilac House by Anita Nair, and Feast of Roses by Indu Sundaresan (while attempting to read Wonder)
Related Reads
And Now, the End of This Post
Dear reader, as always, and always, I welcome your thoughts and suggestions, as well as recommendations. Have you read the featured book or any similar reads?
This post goes towards It’s Monday What Am I Reading over at TeachMentorTexts (though I read these books ages ago, the memories are still fresh in my mind for both of them for some reason)!!
I agree with you about the power of music and to quote Bob Marley ” One Good Thing About Music, When Hits You, You Feel No Pain”
Thanks for sharing. My thoughts and prayers for healing for those exposed to or experiencing the virus of this pandemic in your home country.
I definitely could benefit from a book about worrying.
These books certainly share important messages for children and adults alike. Thank you for sharing your comforting words to describe these books and their messages. Wishing you well.
What a wonderful post! I really appreciate you sharing these posts from your archives so they don’t get lost to time—I’m always trying to figure out ways to ensure my own book reviews don’t just vanish after the week I posted them!
I love the theme of the post—music is definitely one way that I alleviate my own anxiety (of which I have quite a lot!). Also, I am so sorry about the stress of the events in India—they are truly horrifying to watch, and I hope things get better there soon.
Both of these books sound wonderful! I don’t know how much middle-grade you read, but The Little Guitar reminds me of an MG novel called The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane, by Kate DiCamillo—it’s also about the journey of an inanimate object with a mind, and it is painful but so, so beautiful! Thank you so much for the wonderful post—I really enjoyed reading it!
These two books sound amazing and I feel that they would be perfect especially in this day and age when there is a lot of worrying going on. Thanks for sharing.
I have Is A Worry Worrying You here for my grandsons, I do like it and the illustration is great.I enjoyed this post.
I love kid books that have activities you’re able to do straight out of the book, or ones that you can download and complete 🙂 Great book recommendations!
I agree that music is a godsend! The other day I accidently ended up with Adele in my ears instead of my audiobook. I let music fill me up for a while before going back to the book.
I’m glad you brought this older post back because you are so right – music is very important in helping us to manage stress. I’m so sorry for what you and the rest of your country are suffering through right now.
I wasn’t familiar with either of these books, so I appreciated learning a bit about them – they both sound great!
Sue
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