Squirrel Draws Big Feelings

"Uh-oh! Sometimes, when Squirrel felt BIG feelings, he couldn't stop racing around."

Squirrel feels squirrelly all the time! Porcupine gets the pricklies when things don't go the way she expects them to. And Bear only knows how to express his feelings ROARfully.

When Squirrel is having a hard time controlling his emotions and his body, his squirrelly behavior causes such a commotion that Porcupine gets all prickly and Bear has a ROARful day. No one is having fun and everyone is overwhelmed. Until Squirrel turns to chalk art to express his big feelings: "With each squiggly line, Squirrel felt better. Art felt like a quiet hug." After some initial hesitation and insecurity over whether they can make art too, Porcupine and Bear join Squirrel in drawing their hearts out. Turns out, friendship and sharing are coping skills too.

With rhyming text and dynamic, mixed-media illustrations, Squirrel Draws Big Feelings will help readers understand that even when we don't have the words to express how we feel, we don't need to get stuck there.

Erin Dealey is an award-winning children's author and playwright. Erin has published dozens of books celebrating kindness and community, including Dear Earth. . . From Your Friends in Room 5 (NYSRA Charlotte Award) and Snow Globe Wishes (Anna Dewdney Read Together Honor Book). With decades of experience as a language arts and theater teacher, she loves motivating kids to read, write, and make art. She lives in Northern California with her husband.

Luciana Navarro Powell grew up and started her illustration career in Brazil before moving to the United States in 2002. She worked as an art buyer for an educational publisher in the Chicago area, before moving to California and becoming a full-time illustrator. She now lives in Washington state and has illustrated more than 20 children's books. In her free time, she loves to go hiking with her family and paint en plein air.