Picture Book Friday

Some Days by Karen Kaufman Orloff with illustrations by Ziyue Chen explores the varied feelings that young children experience.

The text is shaped around a year in the life of a boy and girl as they deal with “Kites up in the sky days.” and “Need my mommy now days.” The rhyming text examines a multitude of emotions – joy, excitement, contentment, disappointment, anger, sadness, and more through everyday experiences –

“Take a little doze days.”

“Hurt myself somehow days.”

“Drippy nose and sneeze days.”

Large, cartoon-style characters fill double-page spreads that are uncluttered and maintain reader focus on the essential narrative points. “Running for the bus days.” Positions the viewer directly in the path of the oncoming children.  “Some days are feeling kind of mad days.” gives readers a birds-eye view of the girl angrily scribbling across a paper with crayons.

Children will readily identify with the characters and recognize the emotional responses portrayed in the varied situations. Good days and difficult days are thoughtfully juxtaposed and the book concludes with a strong positive message:

“But MOST days are…

Ready? One, two, three days.

Lots to do and see days.

Learning to be me days.”

SOME DAYS gives parents and children a warm and honest look at childhood emotions, acknowledges both the positive and negative moments, and creates a perfect opportunity to talk about feelings: how they come and go, and ways to cope with our emotions when they sometimes seem too big to deal with in the moment.

Recommended as a read-aloud or read alone title for home and school libraries.