The Worry Jar

Frida is a bit of a worrier. She worries what clothes to wear to go out, whose table to sit at at school, the peas on her plate and she definitely worries about swimming. What if there’s a shark in the pool?

Whenever she’s out and about, Frida also looks for pebbles. She collects them, and they start to weigh down her pockets – just like her worries make her feel a little heavy.

One day, Granny comes for a visit, and gives Frida a special jar to keep her pebbles in. Once Frida has a home for her pebbles, she stops worrying quite so much, and manages to start enjoying all the simple pleasures, like going on the slide and swimming like a fish. Hurrah!

This sweet and sensitive story, exploring the worries that little ones can have, is a sympathetic exploration of feelings. All young children have likely felt worried about something at some point: school, friendships and transitions to new things, in particular. Helpfully, as well as acknowledging those feelings, The Worry Jar comes with a helpful idea about what we can do to combat them.

Jenny Bloomfield’s charming retro 70s style illustrations are absolutely gorgeous, as is the sweet and touching relationship between Frida and her Granny.