B is for Breathe #ReadYourWorld

This Friday is the 7th annual Multicultural Children's Book Day! This incredible event is a day-long celebration of children's literature. Check back here on January 31st at The Logonauts for the GIANT link up with hundreds of book reviews of high-quality inclusive literature.

B is for Breathe

As part of the event, I received a gift copy of B is for Breathe: the ABCs of coping with fussy and frustrated feelings to review. All thoughts are my own. The book is also available in Spanish: R Es Para Respirar: El abecedario para manejar los sentimientos irritables y frustrantes.

B is for Breathe by Dr. Melissa Munro Boyd is a alphabet picture book. Each page has a different letter with a strategy for dealing with feelings and emotions. From A is for Art to Z is for ZZZZZ, each one is tailored to helping young kids cope with big feelings. In addition to the letter-prompt and an illustration, each page also has a sentence explanation about the strategy and how it helps.

Author Dr. Melissa Muro Boyd is a clinical psychologist with a background treating military personnel dealing with the effects of PTSD. She has also worked in a school setting and has three children of her own. This is her first book. You can read an interview with her about this book here.

My Review of B is for Breathe

My toddler son adores this book. It is currently in heavy rotation on his bookshelf. He is big into alphabet books, and he likes exploring some of the small details in the illustrations. This is one of his favorites. (He likes to say, "Oh no, grapes!" and point to the spilled grapes on the table.) We usually skip the full sentences when reading, since he's so young, but I appreciate that this is a book that can grow with him once he gets older.

The book features a diverse group of children and families, and I loved the tiny details like the two parents wearing college sweatshirts from different HBCUs (Historically Black Colleges and Universities). All children should be able to find themselves represented here.

I think this is a great book for the toddler to pre-kindergarten set and would work well for young school-aged children as well. (The P is for Pray page has caused some consternation in the Amazon reviews, but I feel like it is presented respectfully and doesn't presuppose any particular religion or denomination.) Finally, there are a wide range of activities and strategies included, making the book appropriate for a wide range of ages. This is a great book for helping kids deal with feelings and exploring positive ways to channel their emotions.

More about Multicultural Children's Book Day

Multicultural Children’s Book Day 2020 (1/31/20) is in its 7^th year! This non-profit children’s literacy initiative was founded by Valarie Budayr and Mia Wenjen; two diverse book-loving moms who saw a need to shine the spotlight on all of the multicultural books and authors on the market while also working to get those book into the hands of young readers and educators.
Seven years in, MCBD’s mission is to raise awareness of the ongoing need to include kids’ books that celebrate diversity in homes and school bookshelves continues.

MCBD 2020 is honored to have the following Medallion Sponsors on board

Super Platinum

Make A Way Media/ Deirdre “DeeDee” Cummings,

Platinum

Language Lizard, Pack-N-Go Girls,

Gold

Audrey Press, Lerner Publishing Group, KidLit TV, ABDO BOOKS : A Family of Educational Publishers, PragmaticMom & Sumo Jo, Candlewick Press,

Silver

Author Charlotte Riggle, Capstone Publishing, Guba Publishing, Melissa Munro Boyd & B is for Breathe,

Bronze

Author Carole P. Roman, Snowflake Stories/Jill Barletti, Vivian Kirkfield & Making Their Voices Heard. Barnes Brothers Books, TimTimTom, Wisdom Tales Press, Lee & Low Books, Charlesbridge Publishing, Barefoot Books Talegari Tales

Author Sponsor Link Cloud

Jerry Craft, A.R. Bey and Adventures in Boogieland, Eugina Chu & Brandon goes to Beijing, Kenneth Braswell & Fathers Incorporated, Maritza M. Mejia & Luz del mes_Mejia, Kathleen Burkinshaw & The Last Cherry Blossom, SISSY GOES TINY by Rebecca Flansburg and B.A. Norrgard, Josh Funk and HOW TO CODE A ROLLERCOASTER, Maya/Neel Adventures with Culture Groove, Lauren Ranalli, The Little Green Monster: Cancer Magic! By Dr. Sharon Chappell, Phe Lang and Me On The Page, Afsaneh Moradian and Jamie is Jamie, Valerie Williams-Sanchez and Valorena Publishing, TUMBLE CREEK PRESS, Nancy Tupper Ling, Author Gwen Jackson, Angeliki Pedersen & The Secrets Hidden Beneath the Palm Tree, Author Kimberly Gordon Biddle, BEST #OWNVOICES CHILDREN’S BOOKS: My Favorite Diversity Books for Kids Ages 1-12 by Mia Wenjen, Susan Schaefer Bernardo & Illustrator Courtenay Fletcher (Founders of Inner Flower Child Books), Ann Morris & Do It Again!/¡Otra Vez!, Janet Balletta and Mermaids on a Mission to Save the Ocean, Evelyn Sanchez-Toledo & Bruna Bailando por el Mundo\ Dancing Around the World, Shoumi Sen & From The Toddler Diaries, Sarah Jamila Stevenson, Tonya Duncan and the Sophie Washington Book Series, Teresa Robeson & The Queen of Physics , Nadishka Aloysius and Roo The Little Red TukTuk, Girlfriends Book Club Baltimore & Stories by the Girlfriends Book Club, Finding My Way Books , Diana Huang & Intrepids, Five Enchanted Mermaids, Elizabeth Godley and Ribbon’s Traveling Castle, Anna Olswanger and Greenhorn, Danielle Wallace & My Big Brother Troy , Jocelyn Francisco and Little Yellow Jeepney, Mariana Llanos & Kutu, the Tiny Inca Princess/La Ñusta Diminuta, Sara Arnold & The Big Buna Bash, Roddie Simmons & Race 2 Rio, DuEwa Frazier & Alice’s Musical Debut, Veronica Appleton & the Journey to Appleville book series Green Kids Club, Inc.

We’d like to also give a shout-out to MCBD’s impressive CoHost Team who not only hosts the book review link-up on celebration day, but who also works tirelessly to spread the word of this event. View our CoHosts HERE.