When Sophie Gets Angry -- Really, Really Angry...

Pure Rage . . . Safely Vented

When a young child gets frustrated, uncontrolled rage often follows. How can a parent help? I suggest reading this book together and discussing it while your child is in a good mood. When Sophie Gets Angry was a Caldecott honoree for its remarkable illustrations in 2000. These illustrations combine the styles of Van Gogh, Gauguin, and Matisse in a vivid, bright, and effective way. The book uses the metaphor of a 'volcano, ready to explode' very effectively. Geologists would point out that a volcano without vents will explode as the water in the cone turns to steam with no place to go. With vents, all you get is a cloud of steam and gentle lava flows. Ms. Bang uses three illustration techniques to maximum advantage. First, she colors the page with the emotion Sophie is feeling. Second, she turns Sophie's words into physical expressions within the metaphor. Third, she changes her composition to show the transition that Sophie feels as she moves from within herself into touch with the world around her again. My favorite two images in the book are when she first arrives at an old beech tree that she climbs into. The second has her sitting in the same tree while 'the wide world comforts her.' This is one of the ten best illustrated children's books it has been my pleasure to view. I come to this conclusion based on the excellence of the style, the appropriate use of color, the fit with the story, and superb compositions. The quality is uniformly high in all these dimensions. The story itself deals with a typical cause of childhood rage -- being asked to share when a child doesn't want to. Mom takes Sophie's sister's side, and then Sophie falls over a truck . . . hurting herself. That fans the flames! 'She wants to smash the world to smithereens.' 'She roars a red, red roar.' Then Sophie does a positive thing. Rather than simply throwing a nonstop tantrum, she takes charge of managing her emotional state. Her reaction is to run. 'She runs and runs and runs until she can't run anymore.' 'Then for a little while, she cries.' At that point, she begins to come out of herself and her rage. I liked the use of this method for handling anger, because researchers show that by changing our physiology we can change our mood. Also, exercising releases stress and anger. Sophie's family lives near the seashore, so Sophie goes to a peaceful spot . . . where she has found solace before. I think this is an excellent example for your child, suggesting that a child find a place where she or he can be quietly alone where he or she finds peace. This can be a good place to visit, even when the child isn't angry. Then Sophie comes home. 'She feels better now.' 'The house is warm and smells good.' 'Everyone's glad she's home.' So there are no further consequences except feeling loved. This is a marvelous way to encourage a child to take care of their emotions in ways that keep an even balance in family relations. The messages that a child will get from this book are that anger is a natural reaction to everyday situations, that the anger can be defused by the child's own actions, and that this can all occur in a loving environment. For a parent, it is easier to talk about Sophie's anger than your child's anger. But you can certainly ask your child what she or he thinks about Sophie's anger . . . and what Sophie should do. You can also ask your child if he or she has a favorite peaceful spot. You can also describe when you feel angry, and what you do about this. As a result, your child can begin to understand that there are multiple paths to defusing anger. Please be aware that Sophie runs to a quiet place, not away from home. Certainly, you don't want your child to run away from home when angry. If you live in a small apartment, the quiet place may be a cozy corner in a room in the apartment near a window looking out on the beauties of nature. That's why you will want to have a discussion about appropriate qu

3 out of 3 people found this review helpful.

VERY Diasappointed

This was one of the only books in our Library that discussed anger for my 4 year old son. He's had a very hard time expressing his emotions and anger is the worst for him. I was very disappointed in this book. It's more or less a book on WHAT NOT TO DO. The little girl reacts and behaves in ways I would NOT want my son to do. Screaming, throwing a fit, running away, etc. The best I could do with it was read and discuss with him how her actions WERE NOT HELPING. At the end of the book the girl has wrung herself out with her screaming, crying and running away and shows up at home like nothing happened. Her parents don't seem to have noticed she was gone, there is no discussion on her actions, and all is just peachy. Very disappointed.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Great book, just one thing...

I really appreciate the reviews and agree with them. I would like to point out one thing that struck me as the mother of two. When Sophie gets angry, she ran out of the house. I would read this with my child and point out that I ALWAYS need to know when they leave the house EVEN if they are angry. I would discuss other ways to vent anger that didn't involve running out the door. It is a very well done story about the natural progression of anger. We get angry sometimes, we deal with it, then we move on. Great way to open a discussion about anger and appropriate ways of dealing with our anger.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Good pictures and a good story.

This is a good book that every kid should read, often. It talks about how everyone gets angry and that that is okay but we need to deal with it the right way. I loved the book!

1 out of 3 people found this review helpful.

I worked in a preschool last year and this book was in our class

I worked in a preschool last year and this book was in our classroom and I loathed it entirely.  

1.  Sophie is just playing in the living room minding her own business, when her sister takes her toy WITHOUT ASKING, and their mother doesn't correct her. 

2.  Sophie throws a tantrum, which I don't blame her.  Her sister stole her toy and her mom thinks that's okay.  No wonder Sophie has anger issues.  

3. Sophie runs away from home, and no one seems to notice, or care.  She runs into the woods, and sits by a body of water.  There's people on this review board are saying that it's not supposed to be taken literally, and that she's running into her imagination.  The age group that this book targets doesn't know how to differentiate between what's real and imaginary.  Kids that read this might think it's okay to run away whenever the hell you feel like it.  

4.  She returns home and it's like nothing happened.  I'd be a little flustered if my kid ran away from home, but whatever.

5. The book is supposed to be about anger and how to control that anger, but the character isn't addressing her anger in a healthy way.  She's running away from her problems.  This doesn't teach kids how to confront their issues in a healthy way.  

6.  The CD that accompanies this book is read by a really monotone narrator.  

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Very Good BOOK

to all those parents that missed hte point!
This book help children use their IMAGINATION, what parent on their right mind would let their child run off into the wild?, Sophie runs off into her imagination, she is learning how to self regulate. You guys should try reading this book keeping in mind that Shophie, never leaves home, she uses her imagination. :O)
Great book!

This book teaches a child the value of stepping outside, our wonderful world that is right in our own back yard to reflect, and let nature comfort us, particularly when life is not fair as what happens to Sophie. Rahter than engage, go outside take

Well written, pictures well represent the feelings, that feeling that no one want to own let alone address anger and frustration that leads to so many bad actions in our American Society. This books teaches peace, a peace that can be achieved without props, just walk out the door and breathe the fresh air, let the trees embrace you, and so on...I have loved and give this book to every 4 year old that has ever been through my heart, my program here outside of Washington, D.C. of all places, Savvy Babies.......Keep writing these simple books for our most precious vulnerable citizens, Molly Bang.

A Great Book!

I love this book. Its good for teaching children about their emotions and ways to deal with them. It teaches a healthy way of dealing with anger and gives them a chance to talk about their emotions and way they deal with them.

When Sophie Gets Angry Really, Really Angry

Although this book is entertaining, I don't think it addressed how a child can react appropiately when they are angry. Sophie runs into the woods until she feels calm enough to return to the family. This is not an option in a lot of circumstances (like at school). My son enjoys this book for the content and colorful pictures, but I prefer books that help him by giving safe ways to handle his anger.

irritated

This is a horrible lesson in which it teaches. I would not suggest this book to any parent for their child to read. The lesson that most any reader would get is that running away from the problem and then coming back home you are rewarded with a warm welcome? That is only a dysfunctional way of resolving a problem. What first went wrong is that Sophie¿s sister took the gorilla without asking Sophie if she could have it and the mother did not address Sophie¿s sister that she was wrong in doing so. Yes, this is a cute and funny story for a young child, but what they would learn in reading this book is that just taking a toy without asking or running away from home is okay to do, when it is the wrong thing to do. There is no relevant achievement that this book displays. Nurturance happens when Sophie returns home and everyone is happy to see her. Cooperation does not apply because Sophie¿s gorilla was taken from her. Sophie took her chance in running away because she did not get her way, and she retuned home without punishment. Doing one¿s best did not exist because Sophie and her sister were not able to play together. Kindness, honesty, and caring were not shown from the mother when Sophie¿s gorilla was snatched from her by neither her sister nor when she ran away. There were not any right lessons learned. Punishment was avoided in this book. This book was a way of sugar coating how to deal with a problem in running away. Why would we want our children to think running away from a problem is the answer? Why would some one want to write about that? This book emphasizes that when one does not get their way, running away is the answer.

When Sophia Get Angry-Better Ways of Dealing with Anger

When Sophia Gets Angry-Really, Really Angry... is a Caldecott Honor Book and Charlotte Zolotow winner. This book deals with feelings and emotions. I didn't particularly like this book because even though it deals with emotions, Sophia seems to express hers in a way that hurts others. The type of emotions she expresses are unhealthy to relationships and should not be expressed to other children as being acceptable behavior. I think the story would have been better if her anger was expressed in a more constructive way. However, the colors and illustrations were beautiful.

Review for class

How do you deal with things that upset you? Do you get angry, cry, or scream? In the book When Sophie Gets Angry-Really, Really Angry by Molly Bang we read about a girl named Sophie and how she deals with her anger. One day Sophie and her sister were playing and her sister grabbed a toy from her. Sophie got angry and she roared a 'red, red roar' at her sister and then ran away. Finally Sophie came to a place where the 'wide world comforts her', but you'll have to read the book to find out more. Molly Bang, the book's author, writes and illustrates many of her works, over twenty in all. Bang, Molly. When Sophie Gets Angry-Really, Really, Angry. New York: Scholastic, 1999.

My Review

In the book, When Sophie Gets Angry ¿ Really, Really Angry..., a little girl named Sophie is angered when one of her favorite toys is taken away from her. Sophie gets mad - really, really mad! Like all kids, Sophie gets upset every once in a while. When she does, ¿She kicks. She screams. She wants to smash the world to smithereens.¿ What else do you think Sophie will do? Will she stomp? Will she throw things? Will she take her toy back? Perhaps Sophie has her own special way of dealing with her anger. Find out what happens to Sophie by reading this very colorful book by Molly Bang.

Caldecott Honor Book: When Sophie Gets Angry-Really, Really Angry¿.

Everyone deals with anger differently, so how will Sophie handle her anger? This Caldecott Honor Book is written and illustrated by Molly Bang. Molly has written and illustrated more than twenty books for young readers. In this simple and thoughtful story filled with bright and colorful illustrations, Molly Bang writes about a young girl who gets angry and what she does to deal with this anger. Sophie was playing one day when her sister grabbed one of her toys. While fighting for the toy, Sophie¿s mom tells her that it is her sister¿s turn. Well, this really makes Sophie mad. ¿She kicks. She screams. She wants to smash the world to smithereens. She roars a red, red roar.¿ Sophie begins to run until she can¿t run anymore. She comes to an old tree, and she climbs up in it. She watches the water and the waves, and she feels the breeze in her hair. ¿The wide world comforts her.¿ Feeling better, Sophie climbs down the tree and heads for home. Bang, Molly. When Sophie Gets Angry-Really, Really Angry. New York: Scholastic, 1999. Reading level: 3-7 years old

Wonderful book to deal with emotions

This is a great book to help kids deal with emotions. My roommate and I (in college) both like to read this book when we're angry, I bought it for her because she's going to be a child therapist. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone. Wonderful pictures, too.

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