Bo the Bat
By Alma Hammond

Book Description:-
Bo the Bat wears a top hat, rides a bike, and loves to chat. 
But when Bo comes near, children hide in fear.
Bo only wants to have some fun, trick-or-treat like everyone.

Ava Review (a four year olds opinion):-
This book is about Bo the Bat, he wants to make friends and Bo is cute and likes candy too. 

Mummy Review:
I am always looking for books that teach you something new and BO the Bat is a little treasure of a story.   Bo just wants to make friends and go trick or treating.   The problem is everyone is scared of her, through her bravery Bo sets out to inform the children that she is not scary but in fact a fascinating mammal.   A well-illustrated and fun story that really does open your eyes to the importance of our bats.  My Halloween loving daughter has asked to read it three times already!  lucky it is a great book.

​Cutie Sue Wins the Race
by Kate Melton  (Author)

Book Description:-
​Cutie Sue, an adorable little girl, finds out that her school is about to organize a fun running competition that she definitely wants to win. Yet, her road to victory wouldn’t be an easy one. Will Sue manage to become the winner of the race?

Mummy Review:
​I am always looking for books that give great life lessons to my kids, this is when I stumbled across ‘Cutie Sue Wins the Race’.  This book is about a girl called Cutie Sue, when her school decides to do hold a race, she decides she is going to win it, even though she is not sure how.  With her father’s help and some fantastic practical steps (told in a rhyming format and beautiful illustrations) this book not only encourages your child to work hard to achieve what they want, this little gem encourages your child to take care of their body and highlights the benefits of outside time.  I am looking forward to seeing what other books Kate Melton has on offer.

Christians Review (written by him, with no editing):-
I enjoyed reading this book; I liked how it showed if you work at something you can make anything happen.  Nice pictures.

Book Description:-
Sadness happens for many reasons. It can happen when a child misses a loved one, loses a favorite toy or gets hurt. This story shows a child how to visual their sadness as a SADNESS SPOT so that they can control it better. 

Christians Review (written by him, with no editing)::-

It was a calming book, it was telling you how to calm down and how to spot when someone is sad.  I liked the exercise at the end using my hand.  I get sad a lot and I will try this, also the pictures were fun.  10/10

Mummy Review:
​
I am always on the lookout for good books that deal with the tricky subject of emotions.   Honestly I was attracted to this book because I loved the look of the cover and also because I have a beautiful boy that has blue days (as do we all).   This is a great little book that teaches your child to not only recognize sadness in themselves but also in other people, which is a fantastic glimmer into compassion and empathy.  I love that it gives simple, but affective advice on how to deal with sadness.   All in all for me a 10/10 

Cami Kangaroo Has Too Many Sweets by Stacy C. Bauer

Book Description:

Cami Kangaroo loves sweets. In fact, she can't stop thinking about them. Even after Mommy catches her eating from a bucket of ice cream, she still finds ways to sneak them. Will she ever be able to listen? Cami Kangaroo is funny, uplifting story about the importance of honesty and following the rules, even when you don’t want to.

Christians Review (written by him, with no editing)::-

I liked this story, it shows you that you don’t sneak treats or get bad teeth and to be honest and eat better.

Mummy’s Review:

A beautifully illustrated book about a Kangaroo called Cami, who like most of us has a sweet tooth and through many sneaky ways she manages to get all her favourite treats and doesn’t listen to her mummy about how she could get cavities, until she goes to the dentist.    I loved reading this story with my boy and this reinforced the idea that sweets are treats and not for everyday use, that he is in charge of his health and finally above all to list and be honest.  All in all a great read.

My beautiful son, aka 'Boy' which is what my daughter calls him... as a ongoing project and bonding experience we are reviewing books together.  We will read weekly different book subjects but our first week is going to focus on anxiety, positive thinking and emotions.  So join us as we learn, laugh and hopefully love some of the wonderful books out there.

The Scaredies Away by Stacie Florie and Barry McDonagh
 
Book description:
Eight-year-old Jack is scared...of the dark...of swimming in the ocean...and of riding the biggest roller coaster on the boardwalk. Jack usually runs away from what scares him. Most people do! But now that his cousin Clay has taught him how to overcome his fears all on his own, Jack is ready to take on the world! And with the Magic Finger Countdown, you will be too!

Mummy’s review:
Scardies Away is a book about an eight year old boy who is scared of going on Big Red, which is a huge ride.   In this book the boy is taught about how to do the MFC which is short for the Magic Finger Count down.  This book is beautifully illustrated, bright and has lots of great images for children to enjoy.   My son really enjoyed the visualization of the MFC and I feel that it something we will be using to help him when he is worrying.  My only comment that is not 100% positive hence the 9/10 is that I found it very wordy, I wasn’t expecting an overly simplified book but for my seven year old who loves to read, he got a bit caught in it. The message however is brilliant with a great skill to help with anxiety….all in all a great read, I also loved the advice in the back of the book…that was really nice addition.  UPDATE:  We have used the MFC a few times when anxiety comes and it has had some success..so yay.
Vote 9/10
​
Christians review (written by him, with no editing)
What I like about the book is it gives the key to make scardies Fly Away.  I like the mfc, I like the shades and the colour and the type of book.
 
Vote 10/10

Will I be ok?  By Laurie Wright
 
About the book:
To little children, the world is B-I-G and full of confusing situations that create hard to handle feelings. Telling children repeatedly that they will be okay doesn't work.

Share the funny pictures in 'I Will Be Okay' with your children while reinforcing the idea that they are not helpless, and that they can do things for themselves when they have tricky feelings, that will help them feel okay again.

Mummy’s review:
I loved the simplicity of the book, the images were well drawn and I loved the different scenarios that no matter what “I will be ok”.  My son enjoyed reading the book and the message it gave and he read through it very quickly.

Christians review (written by him, with no editing):
What I liked the most was the theory of the book don’t be scared of things that all is ok. 
9/10

Don’t Feed The Worry Bug  by Don't Feed The WorryBug (The WorryWoo Monsters)  by Andi Green

Book description:

Meet Wince, The Monster of Worry, and his number one nemesis, the WorryBug!  join Wince as he discovers the secret to keeping his worries from getting monstrous. 
 
Mummy’s review:
I loved this book which is about Wince the Monster of Worry, as he starts worrying he gets a worry bug and the more he focuses on his worries the bug grows and grows. Until he decides he has had enough of his worry bug and sets about to rid himself of his worries.   This story is beautifully illustrated and a fun way to approach the subject of worrying.  My son loved it and so did my daughter and I have no doubt we will be reading it again.

Christians review (written by him, with no editing):
 I like that the worry bug got bigger and bigger, then shrank because he stopped worry.  Never worry because it won’t help.   10/10

Anxiety is a form of stress. This can be experienced in many different ways — physically, emotionally, and in the way children/adults see the world around them.  Mostly anxiety can be worry about what might happen, things that could go wrong, feeling like you are in danger.

Anxiety is actually a natural human reaction and is an alarm system that activates whenever there is danger or threat!  its the fight or flight response - the rush of adrenaline.  The fight of flight response is an instant reaction to perceived danger, it takes the thinking part of your brain a few seconds more to evaluate whether it is 'real danger' or not and if you are not in real danger your body starts the calming down process.      Now when anxiety becomes an issue it starts to take over day to day life, your ability to do 'normal' tasks, like school, social situations....the list goes on.
So how would you know if you child has anxiety, here are a few of the possible symptoms?

• excessive worry most days of the week
• trouble sleeping at night or sleepiness during the day
• restlessness or fatigue during waking hours
• trouble focusing
• irritability

These issues effect a child’s ability to focus and can be seen normally in day to day life - school etc.

Now the issue is, children may not even be able to put a finger on their feelings and then even if they do, they may not want to tell you that they are worrying.  They could fear letting your down, or thinking they are 'babyish' girls tend to express their feelings easier than boys.    As I have said my son was diagnosed with anxiety very early on, he was a born communicator (started talking very early) but my first sign that he was suffering was that he stopped talking to me,  he completely shut down, became withdrawn.    This scared me more than anything!  How can my boy who talked to me about everything become so within! He was pale, stressed.....then the symptoms escalated.    At school if he didn't perform they would take him out of his class and shove him in another unfamiliar classroom.......which is the worst thing to do to any child, especially a sensitive child.   This caused a major anxiety attack and in total fear and frustration he scratched himself!......Que tears, it's a very hard subject to think about let along write about.

Now obviously we all suffer from anxiety from time to time, but when it starts to control a child's life normally there is an anxiety disorder (a health provider would be able to confirm if this is the case for your child)

• Phobias. These are intense fears of specific things or situations that are not inherently dangerous, such as heights, dogs, insects, flying, small spaces, germs phobias usually cause people to avoid the things they fear.
• Social phobia (social anxiety). This anxiety is triggered by social situations or speaking in front of others. 
• Panic attacks. These episodes of anxiety can occur for no apparent reason. During a panic attack, a child typically has sudden and intense physical symptoms that can include a pounding heart, shortness of breath, dizziness, numbness, or tingling feelings.
• PTSTD - Post traumatic stress  This type of anxiety disorder results from a traumatic past experience. Symptoms include flashbacks, nightmares, fear, and avoidance of the traumatic event that caused the anxiety.
• Generalized Anxiety Disorder  Characterized by excessive, uncontrollable worry over events and activities and potential negative outcomes.
• Separation Anxiety Disorder - extreme anxiety concerning separation from home or major attachment figures that is beyond what would be expected for one's developmental level. 
• Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a condition that causes kids to have unwanted thoughts, feelings, and fears. These are called obsessions, and they can make kids feel anxious. To relieve the obsessions and anxiety, OCD leads kids to do behaviors called compulsions or rituals.

What are the next steps?
If any of the above relate then your child MAY suffer from an anxiety disorder.  Our child had a professional diagnosis, but that’s individual and there are many different ways to help your child navigate anxiety.    In the UK the NHS recommends a childline to discuss any issues Young Minds' free parent helpline on 0808 802 5544 *  I have never called it as I went a different root.

What can you do to help?

According to the Anxiety Association of America they list the following to help your child.
·         Pay attention to your child’s feelings.
·         Stay calm when your child becomes anxious about a situation or event.
·         Recognize and praise small accomplishments.
·         Don’t punish mistakes or lack of progress.
·         Be flexible, but try to maintain a normal routine.
·         Modify expectations during stressful periods.
·         Plan for transitions (For example, allow extra time in the morning if getting to school is difficult).
 
Personally for us we were recommended Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) which is talking therapies that can help your child manage their anxiety by changing the way they think and behave.   Now we are currently undertaking this with a child psychologist, but I am also working at home to help our child create ways to navigate his anxiety and have really enjoyed THIS Book series,  which are work books using cognitive therapy (my child’s therapist is aware and supports us using these books).   

Overall with Anxiety and again I only talk from my personal experience is definitely not a one shoe fits all solution, but as with anything its looking at different tools to help your child navigate what is making him anxious, so that it’s not consuming him/her.   For us this is a work in progress, CBT is helping but it’s slow! Reading the books helps  and we have mini breakthroughs.   I always feel reminded of the Shrek movie “We are like onions with many layers” so I keep peeling back the layers and working towards helping my little warrior to navigate this crazy world.

Here I list some good websites to learn more about child anxiety.