Published by Abrams Books for Young Readers 

Summary: A girl explains what she does when the world is spinning too fast and she wonders how to fit in. She quiets her body and mind, slows her breathing, and practices yoga poses.  Tree pose allows her to touch the sky, star pose allows her to shine.  When she’s done, she is rested and calm, the world seems just the right speed, and she fits into it just fine.  The sixteen poses shown in the book are named and described on three pages at the end.  Ages 4-8.

Pros:  A fun introduction to yoga poses for young children.

Cons:  I still struggle with downward dog.

Published by Viking

Summary:  On the one hand, Archie’s afraid of swimming with the other penguins because of all the strange creatures lurking in the briny deep.  On the other hand, he’s got more courage than anyone else in his attempts to avoid swimming by flying (shooting himself from a giant slingshot, leaping off an ice-brick wall with a pair of wings strapped on, etc.).  The other penguins applaud his bravery, but what they really want is for Archie to join them on Iceberg Nine for a fish fry.  The only way to get there, as far as they’re concerned, is to swim.  Finally, Archie tries firing himself over to the iceberg on a rocket, which melts the ice and strands him in the ocean.  He’s in for a few surprises out there in the briny deep, but the bottom line is, he discovers he loves swimming.  Ages 3-7.

Pros:  This would be a fun read-aloud, with its cartoon-bubble dialog and entertaining penguin characters.  There’s a good lesson about overcoming fears and trying new things.

Cons:  Archie’s rocket fuel is probably not helping the polar ice cap situation.

Published by Candlewick Press 

Summary: The sun is the star of this book as it travels around the world while Coco is asleep. It travels through frozen forests, across the desert, and over the mountains.  The sun is playful, joining with the wind to blow off a fisherman’s cap.  It’s patient, as it waits outside a window to be let in.  Finally, it barges through Coco’s window.  After rushing around the world, the sun has time to spend the day playing with Coco out in the snow.  Ages 4-6.

Pros:  This is a great introduction to the concept of time zones, with the sun rising in different places on earth at different times.  The watercolor illustrations beautifully capture sunrise in a wide variety of environments.

Cons:  It seems to be cold and snowy in every place on earth.

Published by Plum Blossom Books

Summary: Charlotte lives in a noisy world. Her house is noisy, her street is noisy, even the library is noisy. Charlotte wishes she could find a quiet place. One day, she takes her dog for a walk in the park. He sees a squirrel and breaks free to chase it. Charlotte runs after him, and they end up in a quiet grove. When Charlotte sits down to catch her breath, she notices her breathing going in and out. Her thoughts slow down, and she finds herself, finally, in a quiet place. After that, whenever the world around her starts getting too noisy, Charlotte knows how to breathe deeply, slow her thoughts, and get back to the quiet place she found in the grove. Ages 3-8.

Pros: An excellent introduction to mindfulness and meditation for young kids.

Cons: An author’s note about the importance of mindfulness for children and some helpful tips for achieving it would have been useful.

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