Together Again

The anticipation that the main character has for his sister to come during summer vacation is contagious. I thought this book was nicely written and the emotion of joy was evident,

A tender exploration anticipation, friendship, and family that will leave readers saying “aww” over and over again.

A sweet story about the anticipation of the reunion of a sibling relationship. The book is sweet and bright and heartfelt.

A wonderfully illustrated book telling a fun,engaging story exploring joy. It is part of a series which explores emotions with young children which is so important and never more so than now. The addition of notes for adults about exploring the emotions with children is really great and I think this series would be a welcome addition to any bookshelf for young children.

With huge thanks to the publishers and NetGalley for a joyful read.

A short and sweet example of a child being excited and happy. This is a good book to talk about feelings and what they mean. Joy and excitement, though positive, are big emotions and sometimes can still be overwhelming. This little story shows how he was so excited that he couldn't sleep and woke up early, and how he was waiting anxiously by the window for his sister to arrive. It also shows the sweet bond between him and his older sister, which is always an added bonus.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks to Quarto Kids + NetGalley for the advance review copy of "Together Again" by Kochka, illustrated by Sophie Bouxom, and with tips for parents by Louison Nielman.

Social emotional intelligence is one of the most important skills we can teach our children, but also one of the most difficult to coach and work on - the "What a Feeling" series is a GIFT to caregivers, children, and educators.
"Together Again" is all about JOY. - the excitement, the anxiety, and the waiting that accompanies it. Children will be able to relate perfectly to Elliott who is counting the seconds until his sister Lucy comes home, parents will relate to kids constantly asking "when" in relation to an event they really really want to happen *now*. "Together Again" is a book you'll be going back to (both kids and adults) when joy is big.

Review to come March 16th to blog/goodreads/etc.

I received this book from Netgalley in exchange of an honest review.

I just couldn't resist this very adorable looking and sounding book. I even tried a preview and well that made me want to read it more. I love stories about siblings especially when they have a great and sweet relationship.

Meet Elliot. He is a tiny little boy who loves his half-sister Lucy A LOT, yes, this needs caps. Apparently his sister is away to the school (which is still something that always seems odd to me, I guess cultural differences/different in countries and education) and he misses her a lot, but she is coming home soon and he is very excited which made me so happy. It was just super cute to see him bounce around, remember all the fun things, and laugh.

He is even so excited that he cannot sleep and wakes up at an ungodly hour. That just had me aww-ing, oh my gosh! And the book just gets cuter and cuter. The ending just had me smiling broadly, it made me happy as well!

I really hope Lucy and Elliot will keep this happy and cute relationship as they both grow up!

The illustrations are just the cutest. They are simple but show so much emotion and I love how the style fits the book.

I also love the notes at the ending explaining more about Joy and how they can help kids express that and some other tips.

All in all, I would recommend this adorable and heart-warming book to all.

I am completely and utterly in love with this book! Together Again fills a niche that has long been left empty in the world of children's books. Despite half of all marriages ending in divorce and families including all sorts of compositions, there are very few books that normalize step and half siblings who live apart from one another. When books do depict stepsiblings, they are often shown as villains'.

Kochka masterfully weaves a relatable story of a young child eagerly awaiting his older halfsibling coming home for the holidays. Not only does the author explore a positive half-sibling attachment, but also manages to perfectly describe how difficult it is for a young child to wait when excited.

The illustrations honor the spirit of the words and keep the reader eagerly turning pages. I cannot wait to add this book to my personal collection and fully intend to add it as a therapeutic resource for blended and blending families.

This book was super sweet and I really enjoyed it. My daughters enjoyed it as well. The illustrations were awesome and the story was beautiful.

This is a sweet book. Right off the bat, I loved the illustrations. They are perfect for a young kid- not too busy, just the right amount of color, and the words are situated in a way that doesn’t distract from them.
When the story begins, the little boy is waiting for his sister to come home from school for a visit. I love that these two siblings have quite the age difference. You don’t see that in many stories, and it’s always good to show diverse family relations to young kids who may or may not have them. The sister is also the boy’s half sister.
The boy wakes up super early, on accident, and gets ready the day. When his mom wakes up, he is ready to decorate the house for his sister’s arrival, and accidentally falls asleep in her room. When he wakes up, his sister is home, and he is so happy he jumps for joy!
This book would be so great for little kids, especially when talking about things that bring us joy and connecting with the text.

This is a cute book about the love of siblings and having to wait to see them sometimes. The illustrations are really cute and simple, and they reminded me of books from when I was a kid. The parent section at the back of the book about joy and how to talk about it with kids is really cool and interesting.

I love this book. Elliot is over-the-moon happy because his half-sister Lucy is coming home and he adores her! They share a special bond of love and he can't wait for her arrival tomorrow.

He finds it hard to sleep and is up even before the sun. He perches at the window waiting eagerly, watching and dreaming about giving his big sister a great big welcome home hug. The waiting time drags on and on so he decides to help it move along more quickly by creating fancy decorations for Lucy's room to surprise her and make her feel special when they finally reunite.

"Together Again" is about joy and love. The illustrations are simple, kid-friendly and full of emotion. This heartwarming story describes how difficult it is to wait for an epic event to take place in one's life when you are little ( and big too!). I love books with happy endings and the fact that the author includes a helpful section at the end for adults. I highly recommend this book.

This was adorable. The simple silhouettes and limited color palette reminded me of a vintage toy ad. The story was cute, and would be a good way to teach children about missing relatives, but then being able to spend time with them again.

This was a lovely book that expressed the joy a boy was feeling when his half-sister was coming home after the school year. Elliot was so excited about seeing Lucy and we got to see the different stages of excitement - reminiscing memories, boredom while waiting, anxious for the day to come, staying up all night.

I love how the illustrations in this book are simple yet effective. As a learning resource teacher I like seeing books that are not overly stimulating. This book contains simple drawings and colours that aren’t bright/overwhelming.

The story is relatable to so many families and I like how it talks about a sibling coming for the summer. There are so many family dynamics that students have/experience that I think it’s important they know they’re not alone.

I also like how the author included why joy is important and how children express joy.

Another sweet book in this series of discussing the importance of teaching kids how to express their feelings with words.

As a reader, I could feel Elliot's excitement while awaiting for Lucy. The illustrations were also cute and it was fun following him around the house.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Joy, is the most wonderful feeling. This is a story of a boy who waited for his sister to come back home. Anticipations gives you bubbly feeling, and can't wait for the day to come. Remember those moments of joy? Heartwarming, right?

As usual, this book will have a practical corner for parents. What to do to help your children know that feeling, and how to experience it often.

*received for free from netgalley for honest review* What a cute book! love that it centers around half siblings!

A cute story of brother and sister. Children are above all materialistic things. They are free from concepts of older people. They follow their heart and emotions. They love each others for being there not for any motive or benefit. It is such a cute story with cute artwork.
Elliott waits for her sister lucy to visit him.