Femi and the Mindfulness Machine

About this book

Femi is making a wind machine for Science Day at school. When he blows on the windmill’s sails, the blades spin round and lift a paper cup. Only, sometimes it doesn’t work. What if it doesn’t work on the day? What if he’s too nervous to explain how hard he’s worked on it?

Luckily, Gran has some delicious hot chocolate, and some useful thoughts. She knows that the way to tackle any problem is to breathe slowly and stay calm. Plus blowing bubbles can help!

The next day, when Femi’s machine doesn’t work at school, he uses her advice to stop feeling anxious, and shares it with his friends. Gran was right: it’s not what you do, it’s the way that you do it! 

This delightful book delivers its mindful message with a light touch. It paints familiar scenes of home and school. Femi and his gran have a brilliantly warm, loving relationship, and the gorgeous illustrations are friendly and cosy.

This is a picture book that would benefit children in their first few years of school, who might panic about homework demands, or any unfamiliar situation. It would be good to read aloud to a class, to begin a conversation about techniques to calm anxiety.