What Feelings Do When No One’s Looking
$11.00 – $18.95
By Tina Oziewicz
Illustrated by Aleksandra Zając
Translated from the Polish by Jennifer Croft
Curiosity, a lithe and floppy-eared creature, perches above the open world and gazes out with a zippy blend of hope, wonder, and longing. From the tip of a chimney, we bound into the quiet and mischievous world of feelings, meeting a troupe of tufted creatures as we go. Sympathy helps snails cross a sidewalk to safety, fear pirouettes in an attempt to camouflage with wallflowers, and pleasure reclines across a doily-donned reading chair, sipping a cup of tea. Elsewhere, our insecurities – pesky, cavorting beings – build intricate cages and stride about with clattering sets of keys. Tina Oziewicz’s words hum with truth, and Aleksandra Zając’s illustrations bloom and burst with charming details like a sail constructed out of a pair of billowing long johns or a red slipper falling from a contented paw. Taking in the perfect harmony of this book is like taking a long gulp from a trusty thermos and filling up with warmth. What Feelings Do When No One’s Looking surprises and soothes, inspires us to feel.
Published on July 5th, 2021
Praise
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Learning to identify emotions is a first step toward learning to manage them...this picture book operates as a kind of primer, naming emotions, moods and impulses and the behavior they may produce...Each feeling described here—gratitude, envy, nostalgia and the like—takes the shape of a quirky monster. A few of the creatures resemble hedgehogs or owls; some have rounded noses and others pointed ones; most are covered with soft-looking fur; all of them are gray. We see Bliss zonked out in an oversize armchair, its frilled ears splayed wide and a beatific smile on its little gray face. Envy wears a spiteful expression as it crushes flowers underfoot: "No time to rest—there are so many beautiful things to ruin!" All these emotions live inside us...
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What Feelings Do When No One's Looking offers pandemic-weary children the opportunity to make sense of the complicated emotions they may be feeling and concrete examples of the feelings they wish to foster, such as joy, kindness, courage, calm, and compassion.
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What a beautiful book! I want to give it to everyone I know. The gorgeous illustrations are so engaging that even the more 'difficult' emotions feel approachable. This book will spark many conversations between children and the adults in their lives as they read the simple and engaging metaphorical text and explore how they experience emotions. I cannot wait to add this to our library's collection!
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Imagination and emotions come together in this exploration of character. A great addition to any library!
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Terribly adorable illustrations show all kinds of emotions as they live their lives within us. A great first exploration into the realm of emotions for young people and a great reminder for the older set!
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What a wonderful, unique way to share feelings with young children. The illustrations are slightly whimsical, somewhat magical, and the spare text leaves room for sharing. It's a special book!
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What Feelings Do When No One’s Looking is truly a masterpiece! A children’s story that inspires us to feel. Every single feeling is articulated beautifully with illustrations that reflect it perfectly. A must read!
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[Aleksandra Zając's] crisp, fine lines and gray-tone palette (with subtle touches of coral, sky blue and sage) ensure that even the more volatile emotions, such as Anger, won't frighten the youngest readers . . . This is a picture book filled with surprises . . . Oziewicz has a startlingly succinct and evocative way of capturing these feelings . . . What Feelings Do When No One's Looking will prompt thoughtful conversations about the wide range of feelings a person can experience. It's exactly the sort of book that . . . all children need.
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Freedom sets sail on the wide sea. Compassion carefully helps snails across sidewalks. Envy tramples as many beautiful things it can find . . .Through these and numerous other examples, the truth about feelings is gently, positively conveyed, making What Feelings Do When No One’s Looking an amazing and important book.
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Ever wonder what your feelings may look like? Aleksandra Zając, illustrator of What Feelings Do When No One’s Looking, can help you with that. Polish author Tina Oziewicz’s simple words explain feelings' realities. But it’s Zając’s artwork that conveys their engaging personalities – even disagreeable feelings, like anger and fear. This book delivers its message in an endearing way that little learners will find useful and amusing, as will their grownups.
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Whimsically illustrated and approachable, this book - which was originally released in Poland in 2020 - is a great tool for talking with the kids in your life about all the feelings we experience. Oziewicz doesn't categorize feelings as she lists them - here, you'll find Calm and Imagination right next to Envy and Insecurity, given equal billing - an important reminder that all feelings are valid when you're having them. As we personify our emotions, both joyful and not (imagine loneliness in trudging through a desert landscape; imagine hope making you a sandwich for the road), we find ourselves facing them more easily, and gently. My favorite illustration here is of Excitement, " racing to a friend with a newly-discovered book."
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The book’s spreads often include only one-liners, offering space for delightful art that extends the meaning of the text . . . Readers will give thanks for this thought-provoking read.