Ruby's Worry
by Tom Percival
Interest age: 3 to 6
Reading age: 5+
Published by Bloomsbury, 2018
About this book
Ruby loves being Ruby. Until, one day, she finds a worry – and it won't stop growing. How can Ruby get rid of it and feel like herself again?
This is a very beautiful, sensitive look at anxiety and how a problem shared is a problem halved. It demonstrates this message through gentle, subtle illustration, so even teeny children should grasp it. Ruby's worry is shown as a messy, yellow scrawl of a face (tiresome but not scary looking), which follows her around, takes up room and pushes her to the side. The soft, smudgey colours slowly fade out until the rest of the world is in black and white and the focus of everything is just Ruby and her all-consuming worry.
When Ruby makes a friend – who has a worry too – and talks about what's bothering her, everything explodes with colour and the world goes back to normal. Ruby soon realises that everybody gets worries, and they are nothing to be ashamed of.
A gorgeous, delicate story to share, which feels as warm and soothing as a hug.
About the author
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