Gisbert, a cute giraffe, feels himself shrinking whenever his friends say something unkind to him. His parents are worried about him and want to help, but Gisbert isn't sure what is going on.

This book has a good message and the illustrations are cute. The text was kind of awkward or overly wordy and not at all subtle, but all in all, it's a good discussion starter and can help remind kids to be kind to one another.

3.5 stars.

I read an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

3.5 (rounded up to 4) stars for What in the World Is Wrong with Gisbert? This is a sweet little book that covers a couple of important topics: how unkind words can make a person feel, and that it's always a good idea to trust your parents and to let them know about things that have you upset. The illustrations by Fariba Gholizadeh are just darling and sure to appeal to most kids.

As a general picture book, I found the way the subject matter was handled to be a little heavy-handed; there was no subtlety at play here. But I think this would be an ideal story to share with children who are having trouble expressing their feelings, who are having difficulty handling being teased or dealing with negative remarks, or who are perhaps too liberal with the amount of teasing or negativity in their comments to others.

Thank you to NetGalley and Flyaway books for providing me with a free electronic ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Poor Gisbett, with every mean word, he feels smaller and smaller. Using a giraffe to show how words belittle us is quite fitting. When he gets help, he feels better and grows inside and out. This is a great story to show children how our words can hurt, even when we don't mean them to. A great story for teachers to use with their students or parents to read to their children when there is a problem with negative words. I liked the illustrations, they were large and colourful, sure to capture a child's attention.

What a lovely way to explore hurtful words and who to turn to in a time of need. It’s imagery of how big and small you can feel is perfect. O couldn’t think of a better animal that the giraffe to express this.
Can’t wait to read it with my nephew.