Cover Image: Big Problems, Little Problems

Big Problems, Little Problems

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Member Reviews

Quick Summary: Love and life lessons

My Review: Big Problems, Little Problems by Author B. Feller and illustrated by Artist M. Lopez was a colorful story that offered beautiful life lessons throughout. This book did well in painting a picture of what a healthy father-son relationship looks like. I loved that it showed cooperative learning from both the parent and child perspective. I also appreciated that it showed what love in action requires.

My Takeaway: There were two prominent messages that rang true in this book:

1) Love is a bridge that offers the firm foundation in a relationship.
2) Learning can happen in every experience.

My Final Say: This wonderful story was incredibly simple, but it packed a huge punch. It will appeal to families who want to encourage positive parental interactions with their children.

Rating: 4/5
Recommend: Yes
Audience: Ages 4-8

I voluntarily read this title via NetGalley. Appreciation is extended to the author, to the illustrator, and to the publisher. Thank you for making your work available for review.

* A Goodreads review has been posted.

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I received an arc of this title from NetGalley for an honest review. This is a great book about a different dad and his son, and he teaches his son about not sweating the small things.

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This story was sweet. It’s a great vocabulary lesson without being preachy or repetitive. Sam and Dad are a pair. But things happen and Dad wants Sam to consider if it is a “big” problem, or a “little” problem and how to tell the difference. The art work in this story is unique. The illustrator does a great job of portraying emotion and action in a still work. This book just works and would be a great edition to any library.

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3.5 stars. This has an overall valuable message and was a good idea, but there are a couple concerns about how it was executed that give me pause. The ability to see things in perspective and differentiate between a big problem and a small problem are valuable skills, but the book didn't really go into how to distinguish one from the other or why they are different. As a result, it felt a bit invalidating, as if the young boy was expected to label his problems as small because that's how his dad saw them.

Also, while the idea that kids can offer adults perspective and insights is great, they way it happened in the book was so unrealistic as to jar me completely out of the story. The young boy would not have been able to assess his Dad's situation, come up with multiple solutions, and then communicate them like that. He was literally just struggling with the word "frustrated". I get what the author was trying to do, but unfortunately it didn't quite come out right.

That said, the art in the book is vivid and lively and the relationship between the boy and his dad was very sweet. This might be worth a try, but I would encourage an adult reading partner to really expand on the idea of what makes a problem "big" or "small".

Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review!

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Who needs therapy when you can read picture books? Scratch that. If I read picture books like this when I was a kid I wouldn't have needed therapy. This book shows mindfulness done so, so right.

The illustrations are wonderful. Especially poignant were the scenes when you see the characters wrapped up in the anxious scribbles and watch them unwind as they find a way to calm down. I loved seeing a father and son interact with each other in such an endearing way.

Moral of the story: sometimes the only "big" problem is almost forgetting to share a hug.

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This picture book demonstrates that there are ranges of types of problems and that with support of an adult, children can address large problems and can begin to address smaller problems with increasing independence by determining how big a problem is. As the father tries to get his child ready and out the door one morning, many problems occur. After working together to solve the problems and determining that they are really not that big of problems, the child ends up teaching his father that a problem is not so big after all. It is a very sweet book and a great opportunity for parents and teachers of young children to discuss problems and how to solve them. I would recommend this book for parents and teachers of children in the age 4-8 range. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this great book!

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I received a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is a cute book with wonderful illustrations that teaches about emotional regulation. It didn’t shy away from challenging concepts (like perception) and defined things well, even for younger minds. It also teaches deep breathing and problem solving. My favorite part was having the dad become upset with a “big” problem and his son helping him to realize how he could make it a small problem. Seeing an adult use the same lesson (despite his initial reaction) is a nice touch.

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