We All Live On This Planet Together - Softcover

Rousso Ph.D, June

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0999021036 ISBN 13: 9780999021033

Publisher: Indigo River Publishing, 2017

Synopsis

We All Live In This World Together teaches children to focus their attention on inner strengths and the beauty in our world to manage fear while accepting their negative feelings. It shows how letting our fears build can be overwhelming, distort self-image and how we view the world.

About this title

About the Author

June Rousso, Ph.D. is a licensed psychologist who has worked with children and adults in private practice and clinical settings. Much of her philosophy is based upon principles of positive psychology. It was in her PP studies that she conceived of a book for children to teach them how to address their fears using positivity. Dr. Rousso resides in New York City and negotiates much of its busyness by accentuating the positive.

Review

We All Live On This Planet Together by June RoussoPosted on November 24, 2017November 24, 2017 by Ooha  ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️Blogger and book reviewer at overratedsensibilities.wordpress.com 
We all have fears. But, we are all also more than our fears. So, when your fears take hold of you, how can you overcome them? How can you remember that there is an entire world beyond them?
 
This book with colourful pictures is essentially for children, but, very readable by adults too. After all, adults have fears too. All of us deal with our fears on a daily basis. But, I guess adults are better off since we've grown into that awareness which helps us vocalise them. Children, on the other hand, feel fear; intense fear at times; not all of them, however, can put their finger on the cause or tell us about it.

So, this book is a great gift to make to your baby who's afraid of the dark, but, hesitates to wake you up in the night when he needs to go to the bathroom. The beautiful watercolours will catch his fancy and lull him into a story that gently reminds him that fears are only part of who he is and not even an important part. He is so much more and this book reminds him to remember it every time a twinge of his heart makes him uncomfortable.
While the concept of this book is to be applauded, there are a little few things that I wish could be different. The language could be simpler. A few words here and there are above primary school reading levels, I felt. It could be converted to a teaching experience though, if you're up to it.

The water colours do their job of attracting your fancy. However, I felt they were a little too messy for a child's understanding. Or maybe, I'm underestimating the kids? There is one picture though where fear takes on a rough-hued form; it stands in front of the kid; it was truly intimidating. I felt the impact even in my critical frame of mind and it stayed with me. I wished for more pictures like that.
 
BOTTOMLINE: The book gives out a beautiful message- that we are more than our fears; and that if we ever need help to overcome them, all we need to do is look around. The title may not give you the impression, but this little book is about not giving in to your fears- big or small. So, give it a whirl with your pre-teens for its message and in between all that seriousness, take a break and admire the colours.
Best 

Happy Reading!
Ooha Susmita Biddala

"The main premise of the book is that fear does not need to be crippling, and that there are things one can do for oneself to help oneself in the face of one's fears. This is an important and powerful message, second only to acknowledging that children do have legitimate fears. The examples of things to think about to counter one's fears are freely given at this point. It suggests what things kids can think about and people to whom they may turn for help.

While more could be done to clarify the wide varieties of fear, or to specifically address cultural fear as seems to be implied from the title, the true strength of this work is in showing that one can take proactive steps to counter fear and in offering specific examples to help a child start the psychological healing.

In an age of uncertainty, this illustrated book acknowledges the fears children feel when witnessing the anger and anxieties of adults. Just as important, it offers to kids ways to keep these confusing and destructive emotions at bay."- Ryan Lanz, The Editorial Book Review

Review by Sandi Schwartz  (happysciencemom.com)
From a young age, children express their fears about a number of issues whether it is an imaginative monster under the bed, their parents leaving them with another caretaker for a few hours, or the first day of school. As our children get older, their fears tend to expand and become more complex. They may read a scary book, see a frightening scene on TV, or overhear a conversation about a disturbing news story that triggers fear within them.
If these fears are not addressed, they can start to take over their lives in the form of stress and anxiety, preventing them from feeling happy and safe. Given these patterns, it is so critical that we talk openly about fear with our children from a young age. One way to do so is through reading. We All Live On This Planet Together by June Rousso is a touching children's book that will help teach your kids how to overcome their fears using many of the themes from the Happy Science Mom toolkit, including optimism, self-love, gratitude, and spending time in nature.
Rousso guides children through their negative emotions to a place of appreciation for the beautiful things in life using rhymes and captivating illustrations. I love how the artwork reflects the mood of each page. Fear is cleverly represented by a cloud filled with dark, dreary colors like gray, black, and burnt umber and then happiness/calmness is represented by a bright colorful cloud of purple, blue, green, and pink.
The story begins by pointing out that the world can be a cold, unloving place. This type of environment can lead to fear, and ultimately anger. She then quickly shifts to how we can shake our fears.
Self-LoveFirst, the book teaches children to focus on their inner strengths through self-love. Unfortunately, fear can distort how we view ourselves and the world around us. She talks about how our fears are not who we truly are. "Ask yourself all of who you are: kind, loving, curious, and smart. I am sure that you can think of more, but, at least, you have a good start."
GratitudeMuch of the story focuses on how we can look for the positives in the world to shrink our fears. We can do this by practicing gratitude. Rousso highlights uplifting examples from nature that we can be thankful for: flowers, trees, the ocean, sunshine, playing outside, birds, and fireflies. She takes us through a journey of the seasons with examples like feeling sand in our toes along the beach, observing colorful leaves in autumn, building a snowman in winter, and watching flowers bloom in spring.
The miracles of nature help break the cycle of fear because they bring us a sense of awe, curiosity, and thankfulness for what we experience. Our nervous system reacts in the opposite way to awe than anxiety. Instead of the "fight or flight" response kicking in, awe keeps us still and relaxed, benefiting both our body and mind.
When you read this book together with your children, ask them to point out what they are grateful for. Consider asking them to keep a gratitude journal and to draw pictures of the beauty of the world that they find so special.
ImaginationOn the last page, Rousso reminds readers that we have control over our fear and how we view the world. It is up to us to "let the fear be" and to not focus on it. As an alternative to getting lost in the fearful thoughts, she suggests that we tap into our imagination to envision something or a place that we love. This is an effective tool that we can teach our children. Ask your kids to close their eyes and visualize their favorite place or something that makes them smile so big. Have them describe it and then you can work together to write down their description and maybe even have them draw or paint it. Then they can go back to that happy vision whenever they feel scared.

Edition details

• Publisher: Indigo River Publishing
• Publication date: 2017
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0999021036
• ISBN 13: 9780999021033
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 30