Noni is Nervous by H. Hartt-Sussman (2nd review)

• Published in: The Deakin Review of Children's Literature
• Main Author: Walter, Lori
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: University of Alberta Libraries 2014
• Subjects: Lone; Tundra
• Online Access: http://ejournals.library.ualberta.ca/index.php/deakinreview/article/view/23207; https://doi.org/10.20361/G2TW2T

Hartt-Sussman, Heather. Noni is Nervous. Illus. Geneviève Côté. Toronto, ON: Tundra Books, 2013. Print.This picture book gently, but also deftly, captures what anxiety feels like for a child. Noni is Nervous opens with a humorous depiction of Noni’s anxiety about universal problems such as bossy friends and global warming--an overenthusiastic playmate has lassooed Noni and a polar bear sweats next to a penguin in a kiddie pool. But this gentle humour and lightness is also interspersed with images that show Noni as a lone, isolated figure on the page, worrying about her first day of school and all that could go wrong. In addition to capturing this sense of isolation that is a symptom of anxiety, Heather Hartt-Sussman’s book also explores other symptoms such as nail biting, hair twirling, non-stop talking, and catastrophizing, which all add up to form a compelling portrait of a nervous child. Geneviève Côté’s cartoonish, crayon and watercolour illustration that conveys Noni’s isolation also becomes a wash of colour and excitement as Noni’s anxiety lessens when she befriends an outgoing girl and begins to form friendships.Easy to read with simple, repetitive sentences and filled with visual jokes--Noni imagines she has ended up at school in her pyjamas and that her teacher is a mean monster with fangs and a lizard tail, this book will appeal to young children as it gently explores what it is like to have problems with anxiety. Parents could also use the book to raise anxiety issues with their children and children may be able to use the book to give voice to their emotions and fears.Noni is Nervous is an engaging, informative, and durable hardcover picture book for its target audience of two to five year olds.Highly recommended: 4 stars out of 4Reviewer: Lori WalterFor over two years, Lori Walter worked as an assistant to the Research Librarian in the Faculty of Nursing Research Office at the University of Alberta. She has recently graduated with her MLIS from the University of Alberta, and she is the new Scholarly Communications Librarian at the UBC Okanagan Library.