By Todd Parr
Todd Parr runs down a long list of everyday feelings, one bold neon page at a time, for the youngest child who's just learning that feelings have names.
Todd Parr goes down a list of feelings, one per page, a few words each: sometimes I feel happy, sometimes I feel sad, sometimes I feel like hugging, sometimes I feel like being alone. The pictures are pure Todd Parr, thick black outlines and loud crayon-bright colors, a purple dog, a bright green face, so a two-year-old can point and laugh at every page. There's no story to follow, just one feeling after another, and it lands on the reassurance that whatever you're feeling, you are loved.
For a child who can't yet tell happy from frustrated, this is about as gentle a start as it gets. Each feeling shows up on its own page, one word and one funny picture, with nothing else on the spread to crowd it. The cartoon faces keep even the sad and scared pages light and silly, so a very young or easily-worried child can meet those words without the book turning heavy. Mostly it's just loud, bright, and fun to read, which is what the youngest ones come back for.