The Worry Balloon

by Mónica Mancillas, Betty C. Tang (Illustrator)

Overview

A thoughtful and reassuring picture book about how one child experiences anxiety, and what she can do to manage her worries.

On the first day of school, Isla’s mind plays the what if game. Scary thoughts come, the world goes dark, and everything feels stormy.

With Mami at her side, Isla takes a deep breath and blows her worries away in a big balloon. But as school gets closer, Isla’s worries come back like a tornado. Mami encourages her to imagine something happy, and Isla remembers there’s nothing she can’t handle.

The storm might come again, but for now, her mind is quiet.

The Worry Balloon includes a guide for kids to build their own worry tool bag, perfect for children and caregivers alike to use when faced with anxiety and change.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781250852939
Publisher:	Roaring Brook Press
Publication date:	07/11/2023
Pages:	40
Sales rank:	315,126
Product dimensions:	8.90(w) x 11.25(h) x 0.35(d)
Lexile:	AD540L (what's this?)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

MÓNICA MANCILLAS writes books for children and adults, including Mariana and Her Familia and How to Speak in Spanglish. She received her BA in anthropology from the University of California, Berkeley before pursuing a decade-long career in the recording industry. Her picture book The Worry Balloon is inspired by the challenges she and those she loves sometimes face managing anxiety, and the tools, great and small, that have helped them walk through each of those challenges.

BETTY C. TANG is the New York Times–bestselling illustrator of the Jacky Ha-Ha graphic novel series. Her debut graphic novel Parachute Kids is a 2023 National Book Award longlist. She earned her BFA from the California Institute of the Arts, and after a successful animation career, she is now passionate about creating books for children. Betty loves squirrels and hates roaches. Born in Taiwan, she currently lives in Los Angeles.

Editorial Reviews

06/26/2023

Relying on weather metaphors, Mancillas coaches readers on how to handle worry with this method-centered picture book about a child who takes on an anxiety-filled first day of school through mindfulness practices. Leading up to the yet-uncharted experience, worries overwhelm Latinx-cued Isla. But each time stormy thoughts intrude (“What if a tree falls down on the playground and I get squished?”), Mami proposes coping mechanisms and positive visualizations, such as placing concerns in the eponymous worry balloon and letting it float away (“Whenever it comes back to check on you, just remind it that you’re ok”). Stencil and sponge textures infuse Tang’s digital art with an appropriate ephemerality in scenes that show gray clouds bunching and dispersing around the child, whose expressions shift accordingly. Realistically depicting thought spirals and intrusive worry, the book takes a sensitive, strategic approach. Back matter offers instructions for “Building Your Worry Tool Bag.” Ages 4–8. (July)

Publishers Weekly

"Anxious readers will recognize themselves in Isla’s struggle and perhaps learn a new way of approaching their fears. . . Sure to help kids conquer first-day-of-school fears." - Kirkus

"Realistically depicting thought spirals and intrusive worry, [The Worry Balloon] takes a sensitive, strategic approach." - Publishers Weekly

"This book creates mental health awareness, while opening the door for conversations to be held, in a gentle and validating manner." - Melissa Gonzalez, Latinx in Publishing

From the Publisher

2023-05-09
Childhood anxieties are tamed with the help of a loving adult and coping methods.

Isla remembers a time when her biggest problems would melt away with a snuggle from Mami. Now, as she faces her first day of school, her mind is swirling with nonstop worries and what-ifs. Isla shares her fears with Mami, who talks her through a visualization exercise involving putting her worries in an imaginary balloon and letting it float away. As Isla and Mami walk to school, Isla focuses on her breathing and the familiar sights, sounds, and smells of her neighborhood. When they reach school and Isla’s anxiety surges, Mami reminds Isla to “try picturing what you want to see happen” and to “try making it something happy,” which helps her transition into the school day. While Isla’s worries haven’t disappeared for good, they have quieted thanks to positive self-talk and other strategies she’s practiced with Mami. Inviting illustrations include powerful visual representations of what it feels like to be frozen in fear—tree roots extending from Isla’s feet as she feels literally anchored to the ground; her legs stuck in quicksand—in addition to cheerful, reassuring scenes. Anxious readers will recognize themselves in Isla’s struggle and perhaps learn a new way of approaching their fears. Isla and her mom are Latine, with brown skin and wavy brown hair. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

Sure to help kids conquer first-day-of-school fears. (tips for “building your worry tool bag,” author’s note) (Picture book. 5-8)

Kirkus Reviews