My Heart is Laughing

Magda and I were so excited to see this followup to Rose Lagercrantz's My Happy Life that we almost couldn't read it fast enough! First we had to re-read the first book (at Magda's insistence) which we borrowed from the library, then we devoured the second one in a single sitting. I know as soon as it is published Magda will want a "real book" copy of it as well.

If you're not familiar with My Happy Life, I recommend reading it first. The characters are introduced so well in the first book that the second one makes more sense if you already know and love them, but I'm sure it's not strictly necessary. Both stories follow a little girl named Daniella--Dani for short--who describes herself as being "always happy" despite the fact that she actually has quite a lot of unhappiness to deal with. She prefers to focus on her happiest memories though, which she tries to think of often.

In My Heart is Laughing, Dani is still trying to deal with the fact that her best friend, Ella, has moved to another town. She has other friends, but it's not the same. She tries to think back to her last visit with Ella to get her through the tough times.

My favourite thing about these illustrated picture books for young readers (perfect for reading aloud) is that the character of Dani is complex and realistic, despite the fact the books are quite simple. At first glance, I thought that the stories would be saccharine and shallow, that the little girl would be happy all the time and everything would be perfect. While that may or may not have made a good book, it's not very true to life. I couldn't have been more wrong in my assumption, however. Dani's life is anything but perfect. Her mother died when she was young and her father is trying his best to give her a good childhood. She frequently has conflicts at school that she finds difficult to handle. She sometimes behaves in ways that she regrets. She is sad sometimes. But the book's delicate optimism hits just the right balance between sweetness and poignancy. Dani is a child to root for and relate to.

My four-year-old, herself a happy child who has her fair share of anxiety, conflict and regrettable behaviour at times, adores these books. I asked her to tell me what she thought of My Heart is Laughing and she talked for about fifteen minutes! Here are just a few of the things she had to say:

Magda's Take
"I love this book. I think this book and My Happy Life are my new favourite chapter books. I can't decide which one I like better, but I guess it depends on my behaviour at the time. I know that sounds odd, but it's because in My Heart is Laughing, Dani has all kinds of behaviour that isn't very good--like when she squirts the sauce and runs away from school and kicks her shoes and breaks the vase--and she has to deal with all of that. Dani's the star of the books, but then when she hides under the table and runs away from school it's like she doesn't want to be the star anymore.

"My favourite scene is when Vicky and Mickey are pinching Dani. I like that scene because I like news. I mean, that scene was sort of like the news, because I learned a lot about the characters when they were pinching. For instance, I thought that Vicky and Mickey were sort of like stars of the book too, but then when they were pinching Dani so hard it was actually hurting, I thought that they're not stars at all. They were like her worst friends, the bottom two. But I liked that scene a lot because I learned about them by what they did. Even though it wasn't a non-fiction book, I felt like I learned a lot from this book. I think you can learn even from fiction books."

This book took me by surprise and I am still deciding how exactly should I start my review. If you have been following the blog for some time you probably have noticed that I love children's fiction. I truly believe that the simplest books are the hardest to write and if you can create something as delightful as Rose and Eva's My Heart is Laughing you should probably get an award.

As soon as I read the first lines and saw the cute picture that went with them I knew this would be an one of a kind book. This amazing little book starts with the fantastic affirmation that Dani is happy and goes on saying that she re-writes the endings of sad books so they can have happy endings as well.

Dani is a happy girl, she is practical, friendly and imaginative like all children. The thing that most astonished me about this book was how real Dani felt through out the story, it was easy to imagine that she could just pop out of the book and be a real child. We see her laugh and cry, we see her cross and forgiving, everything a child is and we see her doing it all in a day (which is something children also do). For me Dani and her friend Ella represent what most children really are and so it was ever so easy to love them and laugh at their adventure.

The adventures of our little heroine show true emotions that children will easily identify with. Approaching themes like bullying and friends moving away Dani shows us how she manage to go through them. I think this is important because it shows children that these problems are real while showing them how to address them. The way that Dani's father handled the bullying showed that it is ok to speak with your parents about it and that they will help you face it. Which is a fantastic message to get across to children.

Another thing to love about Dani is her positive view of life. From the first lines in the book where she says she is happy to the last ones where she says it again, Dani keeps her hopes up and although she faces bullying and gets cross manages to get over it and remain happy by deciding to do. Dani also states that she isn't always happy but that she is happy most of the time so she considers herself a happy person which is a very beautiful way to look at life.

As this book is part of a series, some of the first chapters seem a little scattered and I lost myself in the narrative. However as soon as I found out that there was another book in this series it all started to make sense, since I had started reading the series in the second volume the chapters were probably referring to information already displayed on the first volume.

Eva Eriksson's illustrations are lovely and I truly believed they enhanced the whole reading experience. Children will be delighted with the illustrations while parents read to them or when following Dani's adventures all by themselves. One specific illustration took me back to my own childhood when I read and saw the girls putting their dolls in recovery after surgery since I used to do the same!.

My Heart is Laughing stole my heart and I became a true fan of Dani and her adventures. I now have to go and get myself the first book in the series so I can have it on my shelves. This is a book I would recommend to children and parents alike.

This book is a sequel to the acclaimed illustrated chapter book, My Happy Life, (A New York Times Notable Children's Book). This is the story of Dani, a happy little girl who loves to see the bright side of life, especially when her best friend Ella is by her side. But alas, Ella moves away to another town and Dani has a very hard trying to get on with her life. She tries to befriend the other girls in her class but they are mean and snub her attempts.

She finds herself isolated at school with only thoughts of her missing best friend swirling around in her head to keep her company. The teacher notices Dani's isolation at lunch hour and suggests she go and join the other kids at their tables. Unfortunately she is placed right between Micky and Vicky, the very two girls who are giving her lots of attitude and trouble. Oh my, what is she to do now?

She innocently reaches across the table to get the sauce bottle and that's when things erupt in the lunch room. The two girls start to make fun of her and their verbal abuse towards Dani escalates into the physical realm, causing Dani to make a move to protect herself. Dani has had enough and takes matters into her own hands to prevent herself from being bullied and hurt even more.

You will cheer her on at that moment and encourage her to .... go girl... as things take a turn for the worse if that is possible. She suddenly realizes there will be consequences for her actions and frightened she runs out of the school and home. Despondent and feeling hopeless about her circumstances and herself, she goes into her room and has a well deserved meltdown. Her dad comes home and picks up the pieces of his little broken girl and starts putting her back together again. ..piece by piece. With love and understanding they work through Dani's crisis exposing the truth as to why Dani made the decision she did and finally Dani's heart is filled with happiness again. This is a story of friendship, loyalty and love. Those ingredients can make the perfect cocktail to bring happiness into one's heart permanently. I highly recommend this book.