Big Breath: A Guided Meditation for Kids

by William Meyer, Brittany Jacobs (Illustrator)

Overview

Calm your worries and build your bravery — or just relax during a busy day or wind down before bed

All day long, you breathe — in and out, in and out — without even thinking about it. But did you know that you can play with your breath, use it to take you on an adventure? All you have to do is find a comfy spot and close your eyes.

Does your breath sound like ocean waves? Like the wind before a storm or a breeze at the start of spring? Can you feel it all the way down to the tips of your toes? By the time you open your eyes, you might just feel a little lighter, calmer, more relaxed.

In Big Breath, William Meyer’s gentle prompts, alongside Brittany R. Jacobs’s wonderful illustrations, make meditation as fun as a game, but with big results.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781608686346
Publisher:	New World Library
Publication date:	08/06/2019
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	32
File size:	10 MB
Age Range:	4 - 10 Years

About the Author

William Meyer is a high school teacher, meditator, and author. Illustrator Brittany R. Jacobs is a librarian and the author of The Kraken’s Rules for Making Friends.

Editorial Reviews

Each page invites readers to notice the present moment without judging what is or changing it to something else. This is mindfulness. . . . A wonderful read-aloud meditation for the beginner — or the practitioner of beginner’s mind — of any age.”
— Kirkus (starred review)

“An easy, enticing introduction to an ancient practice.”
— Booklist

“Soothing watercolor illustrations by Brittany R. Jacobs lead children through the process of stripping away the stresses of the day with thoughtful prompts. . . . With a diverse cast of characters and illustrations portraying everything from rolling hills to city skylines, Big Breath is an easy-to-follow primer on meditation sure to resonate with a wide variety of readers young and old.”
— Foreword Reviews

“This is a definite must have book for parents and their children as we look for ways to bring calm and clarity in a rather crazy busy world!”
— Working Mom Journal

From the Publisher

★ 2019-06-25
Step by step, Meyer and Jacobs offer a straightforward and age-appropriate mindfulness meditation practice.

This title's greatest asset is its simplicity. Each page invites readers to notice the present moment without judging what is or changing it to something else. This is mindfulness. "Can you hear your breath? Can you feel it? What does it sound like?" The illustration is similarly simple, showing three people diverse in skin tone, gender, and age. They practice along with the text, and the imagery is demonstrative and uncluttered. Ample white space allows the illustration to breathe along with readers. The depiction of meditators at varying points across the life span provides a subtle reminder that mindfulness is a lifelong practice rather than a task to be accomplished or a goal to be achieved. A misstep is the suggestion of how one may feel at the end of meditation: "lighter, more relaxed, maybe a little calmer?" This creates an unnecessary expectation of what one "should" feel, which the rest of the text actively eschews. However, it is a small and forgivable gaffe in an otherwise well-crafted resource.

A wonderful read-aloud meditation for the beginner—or the practitioner of beginner's mind—of any age. (author's note) (Picture book. 6-10)

Kirkus Reviews