Cub is in a bad mood and doesn’t want to play. He finds a game which sparks his imagination and lifts his mood in this beautifully illustrated book about our emotions.
A simple book dealing with complex emotions: anger and how to cope with angry feelings. Cub starts the day in a bad mood and reacts grumpily to all his friends, repelling their approaches, until he finds an activity that relieves his mood and sparks his imagination, and in which his friends can take part. The story doesn’t attempt to tell children how to react to angry feelings but accepts that anger is part of a child’s natural span of emotions.
It is also a charming read about an imaginary adventure; that it is set in a background that most children will recognise whether they are nursery or school age is a bonus.
The beautiful illustrations will appeal to children and adults alike and will help to make this book a pleasure to share.
A beautifully illustrated story that acknowledges big feelings and the importance of friendship.
Heave Ho is a beautiful story about Cub who comes to school feeling unsettled. His friends try to help him, however he is so full of anger, he needs to find his own way of calming himself down. From this, he creates his own imaginary game that soon all of his friends join in with. Cub is now filled with another big feeling - happiness.
Heave Ho is a really effective story at exploring big feelings. The beautiful drawings support the plot and provide a clear visual image of how the character is feeling. The shift from the opening end papers of a violent storm to the ending end papers of a calm sea are stunning and would provide great opportunities for discussion around managing storms within ourselves. Through the characters such as Ossie, Flick, Rhu and Nook and their play, children will easily identify with the familiar setting of a school. The absence of adult characters is also notable, showing that children have the power within themselves to navigate big feelings and Cub’s independent resolution of the problem of Mo’s teddy bear remind children that mistakes can be fixed and relationships restored, if they want them to be.
This is a story that I would strongly advise incorporating into school’s curriculum to support teaching on friendship and feelings. A wonderful read!
Heave Ho certainly moves in the right direction!
This book oozes class! Friendly, inviting and enjoyable to follow I'm certain that it will be a welcome addition to book shelves around the country! I really enjoyed the story!