Blog Tour Review: I am (Not) Scared by Anna Kang. Illustrated by Christopher Weyant

I am (Not) Scared by Anna Kang. Illustrated by Christopher Weyant. unpgd. Two Lions/ Amazon Publishing, March 21, 2017. 9781503947451. (Finished copy courtesy of Blue Slip Media)

Happy book birthday tomorrow to I am (Not) Scared! The husband and wife team who brought us the delightful, Geisel Award winning You are (Not) Small and the equally delightful That's (Not) Mine, are back with the perfect book about conquering fear. 

Neither furry creature looks particularly happy on the cover. Our Mutt and Jeff bear friends are headed to the amusement park. Little purple bear looks happy and big brown bear does not. Little bear announces, "You are scared." Big bear denies this and asks, "Are you?" Little bear asserts that he is brave and states, "You look scared."

Big bear admits, "...maybe a little." We learn that the two are waiting to ride the LOOP OF DOOM. Little bear says there are much scarier things than rides...like snakes. The two friends imagine other scary things before coming face-to-face with the car they need to ride the roller coaster in. What's in the car? A snake! He's just ridden the roller coaster and wants to go again!

Simple sentences, plenty of white space and adorable pen and ink and water color illustrations convey the thrilling terror that a ride on a roller coaster, as well as other fears, can bring. The kids I read this to were unfamiliar with the two previous books. They were so taken by our two furry friends that they immediately demanded that I order the first two for their next read aloud. A spontaneous discussion of fears arose in a natural and comfortable way. 

Visit the author's website or click here for an activity guide. Visit the illustrator's website here.

All three books are adorable, hilarious and absolutely first-purchases!