Thank you NetGalley and Orca Books for gifting me an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

In a time where we really need more kindness in the world, this is a beautifully done story. The illustrations are cute and diverse, and all of our kids should read this to learn the message.

This is a beautiful story. Simply put for children to understand how to be kind to other people and the world around us. The artwork is great as well!

In a time when kindness education has taken on new life in educational settings, finding open, approachable explanations for kindness's many facets has become more important than ever before. Teachers and caregivers alike need new voices to offer concise language that children will understand and engage with. This book does that perfectly. The fact that this book also represents a cultural experience that many child readers will be less familiar with simply compounds the value that the book offers. Well done all around.

When We Are Kind by Monique Gray Smith is a bright and beautiful, thoroughly Native children's picture book about kindness--to everyone and everything around us. Colorful yet peaceful illustrations are filled with diverse representation (child in a wheelchair, Black and Native children, etc.) and tiny details that subtly affirm Native culture and traditions, from elders wearing turquoise jewelry, to patterned blankets hanging on a laundry line, to moccasins by a bed, and to three sisters gardens, among others. This book affirms kindness, not only to friends or immediate family, but to elders, to the earth, to animals, and even to ourselves. It affirms the interconnection of all things, or as the last page says, "When we are kind, we remember we are all related." The text on each 2 page spread is simple and brief, and uses the artwork to help convey the message, so this could be an appropriate book for a range of ages, including very young children.

Thank you to #NetGalley and Orca Publishers for sharing a temporary digital advanced copy of #WhenWeAreKind in exchange for an honest review.

When We Are Kind is the whole package. The story is clear and engaging. The characters are diverse and the illustrations are beautiful. I loved reading this book to my daughter, she enjoyed it and wanted to read it over and over again. Monique Gray Smith wrote a book that parents, teachers and librarians will all agree on.

The publisher made a copy of this book available via Netgalley. This is my honest review.

I absolutely adored this one! I loved the story and the message behind it. The visuals were all Gorgeous!! I loved how this book included all people with different abilities, races and so much more.

Monique Gray Smith's writing is a treasure, and is beautiful to read. The simplicity of this book and the idea of being kind, and ways to show that kindness are timeless. The illustrations are appealing in their colorful way while still looking realistic.

I love books that have diverse characters. This was a fun book to read with my daughter and will definitely become one we give as gifts.

My daughter and i loved this book and the illustrations. The colors are bright and engaging. My daughter is on the autism spectrum and it was nice to have a visual on how others treat others. I'm so grateful for my copy!

This book gives great examples of not only kindness to other people but to the earth and nature. It teaches us to be grateful for the things that we are given, from nature, from our families, from our friends. It was so nice to see such diversity represented in the characters, including indigenous peoples. This is a book I would definitely use in my classroom.

This is, quite simply, a delightful book. We all need to be kinder to ourselves and to others, especially now, and this book really honors that idea. The children are of all different ethnic backgrounds, and I love the diversity, as that is often not featured in children's illustrated books.

This was such a wonderful (and visually beautiful) read! My son and I thoroughly enjoyed reading this together, and afterwards were able to keep the story going with positives that we do daily that bring us joy. Thank you!

This is a simple, lovely book using thoughtful words and beautiful pictures to help children discover what kindness is, and how the message of sharing kindness is for everyone - even our planet. The book is a wonderful way to initiate a discussion with young children about the importance of showing kindness to ourselves and to others and how expressions of kindness make us feel good as well. No matter what our age, we have the power to make our world a better place through our kindness.

Thank you, Net Galley, for the opportunity to review this lovely book.

Oh how cute!!! The story is so wholesome and thought provoking but it’s the art that made me so happy. I love the bright colours and rendering and i loved all the character designs

The illustrations in when We Are Kind give true glimpses of kindness as a child might understand it. Both the expressions on the characters faces and postures portrayed in their interactions evoke intimacy and affection. When We Are Kind offers those who share this book an opportunity for more than one discussion of the many ways kindness can be shared in our lives. Each page tells a story that will have children asking a loved one to read this book to them again and again.

This simple book explains in what kindness is. Each page makes statement explaining one aspect of kindness. This sentence is accompanied by an illustration. This book talks about how we can be kind to each other, to our families, friends and neighbors, and to the planet. It continues on explaining the feelings we get when we are actively kind.

Nicole Neidhardt’s bold illustrations show indigenous people in of different skin tones, but the messages of kindness are for everyone. Her artwork turns this simple book into a thing of beauty. She explains that she integrates “ Navajo identity into my everyday contemporary reality. I explore this relationship through the media of painting, reflective mylar stenciling, and painted collage. “

This is a beautiful book. It’s ideal to read to a group of younger students at the beginning of the school year. It’s one I’m looking forward to sharing with my three year old grandchildren.

I appreciate how that it shows us the power each of us have, no matter our age, to make the world a better place.

This book is about teaching children through kindness, knowledge and wisdom.

What worked for this book was everything from the words chosen to tell the story by Monique Gray Smith to the illustrations created by Nicole Neidhardt. It teaches readers that kindness is everything and we are all connected.

Overall it was a beautiful read, and would be recommended for everyone.

Thank you to NetGalley and Orca Book Publishers for the ARC.

#WhenWeAreKind #NetGalley

When We Are Kind by Monique Gray Smith is a delightful storybook for early readers that teaches children the essence of kindness and how it makes our world a brighter place.
Explaining concepts to kids can be a challenge, but this wonderful story will make teaching these values easier for adults and more memorable for kids.
The illustrations by Nicole Neidhardt are beautiful and bright, and I love that the book includes representation of both BIPOC and disabled individuals. It's great for those trying to incorporate diverse reads into their child's library.
Many thanks to Orca Book Publishers and NetGalley for the advance copy.

This is a lovely, heart warming book for young children that I would highly recommend!

This is a story about being kind, and it features Indigenous children in it. It's great to see more diversity in children's books, especially with a book that displays it in such a great way. Showing that kindness is important and can be shown in many ways is a lovely message and theme for the book.

Five out of five stars.

Thank you to NetGalley and Orca Books for providing me a free copy of this book in exchange of an honest review.

In When We Are Kind, Monique Gray Smith uses simple accessible text to introduce a young audience to different forms of kindness. There are examples of kindness to self (I am kind when I take care of myself and get a good night’s sleep) and kindness to others (I am kind when I share with my friends). What sets the text apart from other books on kindness are the inclusion of First Peoples Principles' of our connectiveness to nature (I am kind when I only take from the earth what I need) and the importance of Elders (I am kind when I bring food to my Elders). Smith also dedicates half the text to show readers how positive feelings connect to kindness. Illustrations are bright and bold and include First Peoples’ cultural elements. Children presented are diverse in race and ability (includes a child in a wheelchair). This book is a welcomed addition to school libraries with the universal theme of kindness, a focus on positive feelings, and its inclusion of Indigenous culture.