Book Review: Howard B. Wigglebottom Learns It's Okay to Back AwayTitle: Howard B. Wigglebottom Learns It’s Okay to Back Away
Author: Howard Binkow
Publisher: We Do Listen Foundation

In Howard B. Wigglebottom Learns It’s Okay to Back Away  our favorite little bunny has a major problem: he’s mad. Very, very mad. Things just aren’t going his way. At lunch time, he’s really hungry, so he cuts to the front of the line and when he’s caught, he gets sent all the way to the back. By the time he gets up front, the chocolate milk is all gone. This makes Howard really angry. So angry, in fact, that Howard the Ninja Bunny karate kicks the milk out of his friend Bob’s hand, which causes the milk, Bob, and a tray of spaghetti to go flying. Howard is told he must clean up the mess, and Bob makes a snide comment telling Howard that he missed a spot. Howard gets even angrier, loses his cool, and slips in the mess.

Howard is sent to the principal’s office and put in time out. After school, he talks to his good friend Ali, who helps Howard learn to say “Stop, it’s OK to back away” when he feels angry. Howard learns all about listening to his stomach (sometimes we think we’re angry, but we’re really just hungry or scared) and finding alternate outlets for his anger, like kicking a ball. In the end, Howard has mastered his anger and things go much better for him.

Anger is a difficult emotion for kids to deal with because they haven’t really developed the skills to back away yet. Howard B. Wigglebottom Learns It’s Okay to Back Away helps kids develop those skills that will enable them to deal with disappointments throughout their entire life. The story uses real-life situations (hunger, missing out on something delicious, and reasonable consequences) to help kids understand how it is okay to be angry, but it is not okay to flip out and do something that may hurt others. All of the Howard B. Wigglebottom books not only teach kids about cause and effect, but provide logical and easy ways to remedy the situation and prevent it from occurring in the future. Like the other books, Howard B. Wigglebottom Learns It’s Okay to Back Away features bold kid-friendly illustrations that really draw in young readers.

You can watch an animated version of Howard B. Wigglebottom Learns It’s Okay to Back Away  and other Howard B. Wigglebottom books for free or purchase a hardcover copy at a deeply discounted rate by visiting the We Do Listen Foundation website.

 

 

Book Review: Howard B. Wigglebottom Learns It's Okay to Back Away