I was unable to download and read this book before it expired, so I'm unable to give an honest review of it.

This creative picture book follows a girl and her secret friend, Fear. Readers will watch the girl as she tries to adjust to living in a new country but Fear holds her back, keeping her from trying new things. I recommend this picture book for all elementary classrooms/libraries to help students with anxiety understand that fear is normal and they are not alone.

I think every child will relate to this story. And with so many immigrant kids, I am sure they will appreciate hearing this story the most. Where were books like this way back in the day? Anyway, the illustrations were nice and bold with just enough detail. I like all the little "fears" the new girl sees each of her classmates have so she's no longer alone and afraid. Nice story.

When I saw this book, it attracted me right away. Having a grandchild with severe anxiety, I though this book would be a good one. It is a beautifully illustrated book about being the new child in school and the community, and overcoming your fears. This book focuses on a girl who moved to a new country, but it fits for any child who has moved to a new school. I loved the depiction of the girl's fear and how it increased in size as her fear increased. This is a book that would be beneficial to any child with the fear of fitting in to a new group or place. The ending is wonderful where she realizes that the other children all have different fears and they begin to play together. My only confusion with this book is what age level will understand the message. Obviously the message of being kind, welcoming and playing together is geared to anyone, but even though my grandson could tell me the message that everyone is afraid of something, he is too young to internalize that yet. This would be a good book to keep on my bookshelf to read him again when he is older and more able to utilize and understand the anxiety message. The publisher, Flying Eye Books, generously provided me with a copy of this book to read. The rating, ideas and opinions are my own.

Me and My Fear is a sweet, gentle story about a young girl learning to face her fears after immigrating to a new country. Written as a companion piece to Francesca Sanna’s picture book The Journey, a story about a family of refugees escaping their war-torn home, this book is both an empathetic study of a girl dealing with all of the fears and hardships of acclimating to life in a foreign country and a universal exploration of the fears that all people carry with them in their daily lives.

Sanna’s work is wise and insightful. She doesn’t portray fear as a wholly negative feeling. Often, fear is what protects us; it tells you not to do dangerous things, like leaning too far over a railing or getting too close to a group of unfriendly dogs. It’s only when fear gets too big that it becomes an impediment. The little girl is so frightened of her new country that she can’t go outside or play with her schoolmates or even sleep at night.

She soon learns, though, that everyone has fears. A boy in her class reaches out to her, and they become friends. They share their fears, and the fear that was once so big that it took up her entire room has now shrunk back down to a manageable size. It’s still hard being so new and different, but once she realizes that everyone is dealing with their own fears and uncertainties, she feels less alone.

Sanna’s art is just as delicate and lovely as her prose. Its soothing color palette and lack of harsh outlines lends it a warm, comforting feeling that is ideal for the subject matter. It’s wonderful to see such diversity in a classroom, which underscores her message of love and empathy for new immigrants and for anyone who feels different or out of place. Also, I can’t stress enough how refreshing it is to see her depict each child’s fear as a cute, kind protector. Many books, both those aimed at children and at adults, depict fear as a villain or a monster to be conquered. Fear is a natural part of life, and it is incredibly important for children to learn that there is no shame in being afraid.

Me and My Fear is a beautifully illustrated story of learning to live with uncertainty and anxiety and to recognize the common struggle that all people have with their own fears. It is a wonderful book that anyone will appreciate, but it will be especially helpful to young immigrants, children who are afraid of moving, classes with new students who may look or sound different from many of the other children, or any kids who are struggling with fear and loneliness. I believe every classroom and library should have this warm and empathetic book, because Francesca Sanna has created a lovely, delicate reminder that when we open up and share our fears, they become much easier to carry.

When a girl moves to a new country where she goes to a new school and doesn’t speak the native language, her normal amount of fear starts growing out of control and keeps her from doing things she’d like to do like explore her new neighborhood and play with other students at recess. When another student befriends her and they start playing, a dog barks at them and the boy hides behind something – his fear! The girl quickly realizes that everyone has secret fears. As she continues to play and try new things at school, her fear begins to grow smaller and smaller.

Though normally an abstract concept, fear becomes a concrete creature giving kids a tangible look at how a small amount of fear can be good and keep you from dangerous situations while large, growing fears can hold you back from the fun of everyday things.

This book perfectly followed the book on Mr. Rogers I just finished. He was very focused on children and the fears they face. This book speaks perfectly to children dealing with fear.

The artwork was cute and gentle. It perfectly echoed the message of the prose. I loved the ending, with the pictures of everyone, the adults, children, animals, with their own little fear.

This book not only shows fear and what it can do, it also shows compassion and what that can do to the fear of others. Sweet book that would be useful for children who are experiencing a big move, changing schools or who are just generally fearful.

4.5 stars, rounded up to 5 brave stars!

My thanks to NetGalley and Nobrow Flying Eye Books for an eARC copy of this book to read and review.

Really great for developing social-emotional intelligence and understanding of anxiety/fear. Beautiful illustrations and a satisfying narrative arc.

Every child has experienced fear—whether in small ways or in large, even debilitating, ways. But many kids struggle to put that emotion into words—especially when it is connected to other emotions, such as anger or isolation. Me and My Fear gives children language to put voice to their emotions, to understand how fear is impacting their whole life, and to empathize with other children. With beautiful illustrations and a visible—but not scary—picture of fear, children of all ages could be helped by this book.

I received an advance copy of this title from the publisher and NetGalley, in exchange for my honest review.

This book provides a great vessel for adults to talk with children about fear. Fear tends to be a abstract and difficult concept to describe. This book gives it character and makes it an approachable topic.

When a girl starts school in a new country, Fear accompanies her. Fear follows her wherever she goes and grows bigger in new situations. Sometimes Fear gets too big and keeps the girl from participating in life. This artistic story delivers a therapeutic lesson in coping with fear. The gorgeous illustrations help reinforce a meaningful message for all readers.

Wow. What a wonderful book about anxiety mixed in with issues about starting school, moving to a new place, being different, and immigrant experiences. I absolutely adored the fact that this book understands the fact that fear is an OK, even good emotion, but an emotion that can have some very negative consequences if it takes over. I also loved that the book didn't make it into the girl's fault - there was no "pick yourself up by your bootstraps" here, just good old fashioned empathy for herself and for others. The descriptions of living with an anxious mind are so on-point here that I am kind of blown away. The illustrations work incredibly well, too, with calm colors and easy-to-identify characters.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced reader copy.

A young girl has a secret fear that travels with her to a new country and threatens to take over her life. Then one day she meets a boy and realizes he has his own secret fear. Simple and appealing, without being condescending or trite. Highly recommended for anyone who works with TCKs (Third Culture Kids), anyone who is in a schools receiving immigrant or refugee students, or really anyone who works with kids! I plan to get this for all of the international schools I work with.

Wonderful text for children dealing with anxieties in new situations, especially students in a new school or new country. The illustrations are simple and calming which allow the reader to focus on the difficult topic.

Must read for every new kid or any kid at all, really. We all have fears, and this book illustrates that with a beautiful story. Will definitely buy for the library.

A beautifully illustrated book about childhood fear and anxiety. Learning that everyone has some sort of fear, and that you can accept and overcome it is an important message for young children. As a mother to a son with social anxiety this book will be useful when he begins school in the fall.

Thank you Netgalley and Nobrow for an advanced copy of this book.

Everyone has fears. Sometimes those fears are small. But sometimes they can feel larger than life.

Me and My Fear is a story about a girl whose Fear isn’t always bad. It protects her from danger and keeps her safe at night. But when the girl moves to a new country and doesn’t speak the same language as her new classmates, her Fear prevents her from reaching out and connecting to others. She’s miserable.

With the help of an outgoing classmate, the girl realizes that all people need to connect with others in order to help us through tough times - and to make our Fear a little bit smaller.

Me and My Fear is a great book to get kids talking about the positive and negative effects of fear.

Suitable as a read aloud for grades 2-3.

Author & Illustrator: Francesca Sanna
Publisher: Flying Eye Books

I received this book from the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

The art is lovely; the concept is fine, but I think this book about Fear might be confusing to kids. The idea that our friend Fear keeps us safe, the illustrations of Fear as (for the most part) a nurturing, almost womanly-bodied creature, make it somewhat hard to ever quite think of Fear as something that gets in your way and can be irrational. Even when Fear is depicted as not wanting the protagonist to go to school, it never quite looks antagonistic or bossy or crippling. As someone with panic disorder, I know just how bossy and crippling Fear can be, and here it's never depicted as worse than say, Casper the Friendly Ghost with slight indigestion. Books on fears and how they can hold us back and how everyone has them are always needed, but I won't be purchasing it for my library because it just doesn't feel clear enough.

I think my favorite part of this story was how Fear wasn’t portrayed as evil. Sure, it could (and did) get in the way of the narrator rooting into her new home in a new country, but before then we got to see where Fear fit into a more-balanced life.

I felt the illustrations were very strong, a wonderful visual representation of anxiety and how it gets in the way of adjusting to new things.

The place I was most conflicted is almost that same place (the illustrations and what they represented). That is, the narrator is locked in a Fear-buffer, unable (apparently) to reach out or initiate her own growth or connections. It is another child who reaches past the narrator’s resistance and Fear to move the story to its next stage.

From here the narrator sees she’s not the only one with their own Fear, and the story becomes one of shared understanding, and the hopeful ending that they all, even with their fears, can play together.

(I was provided a digital copy by the publisher through Net Galley in order to review it.)

I love social skill books. This was not my favorite though. It is just okay for me. It is an important topic. This just didn’t hit the mark for me.