Anxiety and fear can be crippling for little humans! They need tools to identify, deal with, and overcome their fears. Hedgehog Vs. Fear is a picture book that gives fear a clear characterization and voice that equips kids to address their fear with clarity. Luckily, we can approach a scary subject like fear with the help of an adorable hedgehog who has gone there, done that, and come out the other side with victory!
The story begins with an eager hedgehog excited to embark on childhood adventures— play at the playground, swim at the pool, and ride a bike— but he is confronted by fear at every turn. Fear takes Hedgehog’s reasonable concerns and causes him to imagine awful, unreasonable, and outright ridiculous scenarios. The power of Fear overtakes Hedgehog until he even struggles to sleep at night.
Luckily Dad comes along, giving Hedgehog solutions to handle these unwarranted fears. Dad counsels Hedgehog to consider:
- Is fear helpful?
- Are his anxious concerns based on truth?
- Are hedgehog’s aspirations good things that are worth his effort?
If so, Hedgehog should find a way to overcome in order to achieve his goals in a safe and fearless manner.
Eventually, Hedgehog does just that. He can climb a mountain, and even make a new friend, overcoming a fear of heights and social anxiety.
Hedgehog vs. Fear is a fun read with important life lessons packed into a vibrant short story. Kids and parents will appreciate having valuable morals to refer back to when confronting anxiety in everyday life.
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Meet the Author
Jolie began writing as a mime. She fell in love with a mime, and together they traveled the world breaking out of imaginary boxes. Now they have five noisy children who inspire Jolie to write children’s books and perform kids’ shows with puppet characters from her books.
