Whitney Stewart will travel far for a story—trekking in a Himalayan snowstorm with Sir Edmund Hillary, climbing to remote Buddhist monasteries in Tibet, interviewing the Dalai Lama in India, and Aung San Suu Kyi in Myanmar. She is an award-winning author of nonfiction for children, and a longtime meditation practitioner. When she is not writing or traveling, she teaches mindfulness and self-care to children.
I adore this picture book and return to it often, to read to myself or to share with children. The story of three children meeting Stillwater, a peaceful panda, is fresh and fun. Stillwater teaches each child through an ancient story. The tone of the book and Muth’s illustrations perfectly reflect the concepts of stillness, self-awareness, self-acceptance, and non-judgment.
Jon Muth says it best when he writes in his author’s note: “’Zen Shorts’ are short meditations—ideas to puzzle over—tools which hone our ability to act with intuition. They have no goal, but they often challenge us to reexamine our habits, desires, concepts, and fears.”
Meet Stillwater, a GIANT, and very zen, panda bear in this captivating picture book for little ones that love stories.
When Stillwater, a giant panda, moves into Addy, Michael and Karl's neighborhood, he tells them the most amazing stories!
To Addy he tells a story about the value of material goods.
To Michael he pushes the boundaries of good and bad.
And to Karl he demonstrates what it means to hold on to frustration.
With graceful art and simple stories that are filled with love and enlightenment, Jon Muth - and Stillwater the bear - present three ancient Zen tales…
In gentle, poetic language that illuminates the essence of mindful awareness, Susan Verde has created a picture book that shows children how internal peace is possible. Without preachiness, Verde suggests ways for kids to connect inwardly and outwardly:
“I can watch the clouds make shapes against the sky. I know wonder.”
“I can feel my breath fill my whole body. I tune into me.”
“I don’t need to worry about before and after. I am in this moment. I am peace.”
Just reading this book, silently or aloud, helps me be in the present moment, in the universal expanse of awareness.
I am Peaceis one in a series of I Am books that Verde created with the wonderful illustrator, Peter H. Reynolds. Look for their other titles I Am Yoga, I Am Human, I Am Love, andI Am One.
When the world feels chaotic, find peace within through an accessible mindfulness practice from the bestselling picture-book dream team that brought us I Am Yoga. Express emotions through direct speech. Find empathy through imagination. Connect with the earth. Wonder at the beauty of the natural world. Breathe, taste, smell, touch, and be present.
Perfect for the classroom or for bedtime, Susan Verde's gentle, concrete narration and Peter H. Reynolds's expressive watercolor illustrations bring the tenets of mindfulness to a kid-friendly level. Featuring an author's note about the importance of mindfulness and a guided meditation for children, I Am Peace will…
Alphabreaths is brilliant. It’s a colorful alphabet book and a mindfulness book in one. Clinical psychologist Christopher Willard teamed up with family therapist Daniel Rechtsschaffen and illustrator Holly Clifton-Brown to create mindful activities from A to Z. Kids will want to try out these breath and mindfulness techniques because they are so simple, and the illustrations so inviting. You can do each one without any prior understanding of mindfulness or breath techniques.
My favorite pages include: “Question Breath. As you breathe in, ask yourself how you are feeling. As you breathe out, answer.”
“Superhero Breathe. Breathe in and imagine you are a superhero. Breathe out and imagine how you will help someone.”
“Wish Breath. Breathe in and make a happy wish for yourself. Breathe out and send a happy wish to someone else.”
I’m crazy about Clifton-Brown’s illustrations. Her characters express innocence, wonder, and serenity. Her palette is soft yet evocative.
In Alphabreaths, children will learn their ABCs and the basics of mindfulness through playful breathing exercises. Breaths like Mountain Breath and Redwood Breath will connect them with nature, while breaths like Heart Breath and Wish Breath will help them remember to fill their heart with gratitude and send good wishes to others.
Simple, playful, and with delightful illustrations, Alphabreaths is the perfect introduction to mindfulness and breath awareness.
This stunning picture book is for all of us who have ever felt like outsiders, ever felt scared to be in a group, to walk into a new place, a new situation. Woodson speaks right into your heart when she opens the book with “There will be times when you walk into a room and no one there is quite like you.” And the emotion in López’s characters will have you holding your breath.
I could gaze at Rafael López's artwork for hours and repeat the lyrical text over and over to let the wonder wash over me. Woodson tells of children who are misunderstood, children who feel left out until they can share their own voice and truth. The vibrant illustrations and joyful expressions of the kids at the end of the book bring on such happiness.
There is so much here, in words and art. Give it to all the children you know, to all the adult children too.
There will be times when you walk into a room and no one there is quite like you.
There are many reasons to feel different. Maybe it's how you look or talk, or where you're from; maybe it's what you eat, or something just as random. It's not easy to take those first steps into a place where nobody really knows you yet, but somehow you do it.
Jacqueline Woodson's lyrical text and Rafael Lopez's dazzling art reminds us that we all feel like outsiders sometimes and how brave it is that we go forth anyway. And that sometimes, when…
Author-illustrator Andrea Zuill has created a gem of a character in the awkward naked mole rat named Sweety. Sweety wants to fit in with the others at school, but she also loves what she loves. She loves what others don’t always understand. When Sweety’s beloved Aunt Ruth talks about having been called a “square peg” when she was young, Sweety begins to understand about being different. She will have to find her people and wonders how best to do that. Maybe just by being herself.
Zuill’s humorous text and lovable, quirky characters make Sweetyone of my favorite picture books ever.
From the author of WOLF CAMP comes the story of a charming, mushroom-loving, headgear-wearing, totally awkward naked mole rat who is looking for like-minded peeps.
Sweety is awkward, even for a naked mole rat. She has protruding front teeth, thick glasses, and some very unusual hobbies, including interpretive dance and fungus identification. She's intense and passionate--and her peers don't always get her. But surely there are other mushroom lovers out there? As Sweety sets out to find them, she comes to realize--with a little help from her cool Aunt Ruth-- that being Sweety…
I adapted my mindfulness exercises from Mindful Kids Activity Deck into a board book series to help toddlers manage their emotions and engage more easily in life. Each of the four board books,beautifully illustrated by Rocio Alejandro, offers toddlers one simple mindfulness technique—to calm down, to share kindness with others, to relax into sleep time, or to transition from activity to activity. Barefoot Books published the series in English and in bilingual, Spanish-English editions.
I grew up a fan of an evening news segment called “On the Road with Charles Kuralt.” Kuralt spotlighted upbeat, affirmative, sometimes nostalgic stories of people and places he discovered as he traveled across the American landscape. The charming stories he told were only part of the appeal; the freedom and adventure of being on the open road ignited a spark that continues to smolder. Some of my fondest memories from childhood are our annual family road trips, and I still jump at the chance to drive across the country.
Head West in 1865 with two life-long friends looking for adventure and who want to see the wilderness before it disappears. One is a wanderer; the other seeks a home he lost. The people they meet on their journey reflect the diverse events of this time period–settlers, adventure seekers, scientific expeditions, and Indigenous peoples–all of whom shape their lives in significant ways.
This is a story of friendship that casts a different look on a time period which often focuses only on wagon trains or gunslingers.
After four years of adventure in the frontier, Win Avery returns to his hometown on the edge of the prairie and tracks down his childhood friend, Jeb Dawson. Jeb has just lost his parents, and, in his efforts to console him, Win convinces his friend to travel west with him―to see the frontier before it is settled, while it is still unspoiled wilderness.
They embark on a free-spirited adventure, but their journey sidetracks when they befriend Meg Jameson, an accomplished horsewoman, lost on the Nebraska prairie. Traveling together through the Rocky Mountain foothills, they run into Gray Wolf, an Arapaho…
