Review by Booklist Review
PreS-Gr. 2. True to a child's viewpoint, this moving picture book tells of an African American girl living with a mother who is mentally ill. The spare first-person narrative and exquisite realistic watercolor paintings show the child at home with her unpredictable parent, who is manic and cheerful in the morning, then angry, depressed, and paranoid when the child returns from school. Annie has fun with her friends and enjoys school, but her insecurity about her mother is always there. When Mommy yells, Annie calls Grandma, who assures her that it isn't her fault and helps her through the evening. A long introductory note to adults talks about bipolar disorder and the supportive role community can play. The story will prompt discussion among children because it's honest about how hard it is when a child must act as parent, and about how friends can help. The quiet, intimate last picture shows loving Mommy the next day as she braids Annie's hair. --Hazel Rochman Copyright 2003 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
In a prefatory note, Campbell (Your Blues Ain't Like Mine) explains that she wrote this book "to address the fears and concerns of children who have a parent who suffers from mental illness." As her insightful, moving tale opens, narrator Annie eats pancakes with her buoyant mother. At school, the African-American girl draws a picture of this breakfast scene: "This is my mommy and me.... We have pancakes inside us and sunshine all around us." That sunlight disappears in an instant when she returns home to a much-altered mother who shouts at her. In a touching scene-made all the more so by Lewis's (The Other Side) accompanying picture of Annie crouched in a corner, behind a closed door-Annie phones her grandmother and tearfully reports on her mother's mood. Her grandmother reassures her that she did nothing wrong, that her mother "hasn't gotten the help she needs." Together Grandma and Annie review clearly well-worn plans for coping with the difficult evening (and morning) ahead. Throughout, Lewis's lifelike artwork underscores the story's intense, real emotions as the paintings creatively manipulate light and shadow as well as juggle interior and exterior views. This book amply fulfills Campbell's stated mission and, while it is likely to spark questions from a more general audience, it is equally likely to invite their compassion. Ages 5-up. (Oct.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
Gr 1-3-When Annie wakes up in the morning, her mother is making pancakes and cheerily asking, "Who wants hot, golden circles?" The woman proclaims the breakfast "yummalicious" and Annie's purple dress, "Beautastic." But when the little girl returns home from school, her mother greets her by shouting, "STOP ALL THAT SCREAMING-.GET IN THIS HOUSE NOW!" An author's note explains that this is how life can be for a child living with a mentally ill parent. When Annie's mother gets upset, the girl knows that she should call her grandmother, who reassures her and reminds her that her mother loves her, even when she's yelling. The child has the option of going to a neighbor's house and waiting for her grandmother to come for her. In spite of these safety valves, she deals with the situation on her own-getting a snack, snuggling with her teddy bear, and going to bed. Annie realizes that she can't stop the dark clouds inside her mother, but that she can find sunshine in her own mind. Lewis makes excellent use of light and shadow in his watercolors, evoking both the sunny glow of a happy kitchen and the foreboding gloom of a dark porch with equal skill. The multicultural cast is depicted with realistic sensitivity. The author's goal is to offer children resilience by introducing coping strategies and helping them to understand that they are not to blame for their parents' difficulties. A skillful treatment of a troubling subject.-Anna DeWind Walls, Milwaukee Public Library (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Horn Book Review
A little girl describes a typical day of her mother's untreated mental illness characterized by mood swings. Despite some regrettably cutesy writing, Campbell deserves kudos for boldly confronting a dark issue and for creating a resourceful little heroine who knows how to take care of herself and where to turn for comfort. Lewis's watercolors show an understanding of the nuances of the subject. From HORN BOOK Spring 2004, (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
Campbell addresses the frightening and depressing effects a parent's mental illness can have on her child and subtly presents coping strategies for the youngster. Annie describes her morning with her cheery, smiling mother as she makes breakfast and helps her off to school. The girl, however, is also aware that mother isn't always happy and can be nasty, yelling and withdrawing to her bedroom for long periods of time. It's then that Annie must act grown up, make snacks and meals for herself, pick out her clothes, and get herself to school. The child's friends, teacher, and grandmother serve as a support system that offers helpful opportunities to contend with her feelings. Thinking happy thoughts, reading a silly book, and calling on a reliable adult relative are realistic approaches clearly explained in this plotless vignette. Expressive watercolors reflect the various bipolar moods of the mother and Annie's resigned look of troubled concern, counterbalanced by her upbeat playful disposition. Carefully designed to lend subtle support to families and counselors as well as to the child with a limited understanding of the situation. (Picture book. 7-10) Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
