Just What to Do

by Kyle Lukoff, Hala Tahboub (Illustrator)

Overview

A tender picture book about grief and the many ways to offer comfort in sad times, from Newbery Honor-winner Kyle Lukoff.

When you see someone sad, it's only natural to want to cheer them up. But how? Some people like hugs but others don't. Sometimes a  joke is more comforting than a card. How can you do the just-right-thing if you don't know what it is? 

With its spare, poignant text and unexpectedly levitous illustrations, Just What to Do offers an important lesson about how to offer comfort to loved ones by setting aside your assumptions and following their lead.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780593462959
Publisher:	Penguin Young Readers Group
Publication date:	07/16/2024
Sold by:	Penguin Group
Format:	eBook
Pages:	40
Age Range:	3 - 7 Years

About the Author

Kyle Lukoff is the author of many books for young readers. His debut middle-grade novel, Too Bright To See, received a Newbery honor, the Stonewall award, and was a National Book Award finalist. His picture book When Aidan Became A Brother also won the Stonewall. He has forthcoming books about mermaids, babies, apologies, and lots of other topics. While becoming a writer he worked as a bookseller for ten years, and then nine more years as a school librarian.

Hala Tahboub is a children’s book writer and illustrator. She started her creative journey as an architect and interior designer. She won the SCBWI Canada East chapter’s Storyteller Award for Illustration in 2019, and she was the SCBWI’s December Featured Illustrator in 2020. Hala believes in kindness, coffee, chocolate, and in the immense power of stories. She lives in Montreal.
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Editorial Reviews

04/08/2024

Faced with family and friends who’ve experienced loss, the young narrator of this heartfelt story by Lukoff (Awake, Asleep) tries to comfort them. Each time, the child thinks they know “just what to do,” and each time, the individual requires something different. When the narrator’s brother’s cactus dies, the protagonist offers him a handmade condolence card. “Could you tell me a joke instead? I really want to laugh,” the brother responds. But after a cousin’s goldfish dies, and the narrator tries a joke, the cousin asks for a hug. And when hugged, a teacher who just lost her hamster responds, “Thanks, but I’m okay! Will you help me pass out snack?” So when their best friend’s grandmother dies, the narrator is unsure how to react. “Can you tell me what to do?” they ask. “I don’t know how to help.” And the two, together, find an elegant way to commemorate the loss. Tahboub (Kevin Goes First) contributes digitally created spreads and vignettes whose small-scale figures suggest sweet vulnerability throughout this work, which hints at people’s different experiences of loss, and suggests that asking instead of assuming may open the door to deeper companionship. The protagonists are portrayed with pale skin; secondary characters are shown with various skin tones. Ages 3–7. Author’s agent: Saba Sulaiman, Talcott Notch Literary. Illustrator’s agent: Rebecca Sherman, Writers House. (July)

Publishers Weekly

★ "Handling death and grief in a gentle and tender manner, Lukoff’s newest picture book explores the innate need many of us have to fix the problems of the ones we love the most...[This is] a beautiful story that should be sitting on the shelves of school counselors and child therapists everywhere." – School Library Journal, starred review

“Both Newbery Honoree Lukoff’s text and Tahboub’s illustrations convey a stillness that will make this often-difficult topic comprehensible to a young audience…This book is the perfect complement to Cori Doerrfeld’s The Rabbit Listened.” – Kirkus

From the Publisher

★ 05/01/2024

PreS-Gr 3—Handling death and grief in a gentle and tender manner, Lukoff's newest picture book explores the innate need many of us have to fix the problems of the ones we love the most. The protagonist, a young child, tries many different things to cheer up those closest to them when they lose their beloved plant or pet. Over time they discover that grief isn't one-size-fits-all, and the thing that cheers up one loved one may not help another. When the protagonist's friend loses their grandma, they realize that simply being present and asking how they can be most helpful is the best they can do for a loved one experiencing grief. Combined with Tahboub's adorable and expressive illustrations, children will be newly tuned in to the many complexities of grief. Adults will also be charmed by this. VERDICT A beautiful story that should be sitting on the shelves of school counselors and child therapists everywhere.—Lauren White

School Library Journal

2024-04-05
How does one face a problem so big it dwarfs its little protagonist?

A child confidently assures us that when “my brother’s cactus died, I knew just what to do.” The child proudly holds up a handmade “Sorry for your loss” card, but the brother instead asks for a joke to make him laugh. The young narrator makes the logical conclusion that that must be what everyone needs when coping with loss. But when the child’s cousin’s goldfish dies, she wants a hug instead of a giggle. With each person’s loss, be it a teacher’s hamster or a babysitter’s dog, what they need changes. Later, the child’s best friend’s grandma dies, and the protagonist, unsure what to do, opts for honesty. “Can you tell me what to do? I don’t know how to help.” She isn’t sure, so the two figure it out while spending time together. Both Newbery Honoree Lukoff’s text and Tahboub’s illustrations convey a stillness that will make this often-difficult topic comprehensible to a young audience. With its emphasis on being there and listening to what people need in times of sorrow, this book is the perfect complement to Cori Doerrfeld’s The Rabbit Listened (2018). The ultimate message that there is no certainty when it comes to grief complements the minimalist art.

A lesson here for adults and children alike, if only people listen. (Picture book. 4-7)

Kirkus Reviews