Is It Over?

by Sandy Brehl, Rebecca Hirsch (Illustrator)

Overview

KA-BOOM!

When storms send you running for cover,

be brave, look up. Find a story in the storm

to calm your fears and you just might help

someone you love.

IS IT OVER? celebrates the power of love and storytelling to overcome fear. A prowling, growling thunderstorm sends Risa running to Daddy to make it stop. When the storm worsens, Risa wants a story. His childhood storm stories changed while he was a soldier, so they aren't helpful. Inspired by her toy elephant, Ivan, Risa summons the courage to find her own story in the storm, one that helps them both.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781954868762
Publisher:	Pen It! Publications, LLC
Publication date:	07/06/2021
Pages:	34
Product dimensions:	11.00(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.09(d)

About the Author

Sandy Brehl is (and has always been) a reader. She grew up in Ohio, but lived most of her life in Wisconsin. Sandy is a member of the Wisconsin chapter of SCBWI. She invites you to visit her website https://sandybrehlbooks.com/ and to follow her blog about picture books at Unpacking Picture Book Power Blog

Rebecca Hirsch is an illustrator and member of the Wisconsin chapter of SCBWI. She lives with her husband and daughters in Waukesha. You can find her online at https://www.rhirschillustration.com or as rhirschillus on Instagram.

Editorial Reviews

2022-02-18
A young girl dislikes a loud storm but uses her imagination to calm herself and her military veteran father in Brehl’s illustrated children’s book.

Risa is playing at the beach when a thunderstorm approaches. She runs to her house and says, “A STORM Daddy! Make it stop!” He tells her that he wishes that he could and that it will be over soon. He reassures her that she’s safe and encourages her to play in her room. As the wind howls and the waves pound, Risa tells her stuffed elephant, Ivan, not to be scared. When there are loud thunderclaps, she runs to Daddy again. Risa feels his heart racing, and he says that when he was young, he loved storms, and “skies were stages for my imagination.” (Hirsch’s upbeat illustrations show clouds playing instruments and riding on a ship and a whale.) But Daddy says his stories won’t help Risa, because they changed when he was a soldier; this is demonstrated by images of menacing animals. When the youngster looks at the skies, she sees golden elephants, including a baby one that looks like Ivan, led by a daddy elephant; Risa declares that the elephant family is safe, and the daddy elephant is shown fending off dangerous creatures. Daddy claims he also sees the golden elephants, and now his heartbeat is steady. Over the course of this book, Brehl presents a story that may help readers whose experiences mirror the characters’—particularly those in military families with members who struggle with PTSD. In the illustrations, Ivan, the stuffed elephant, is delightfully drawn with a heart on his body; his eyes widen with surprise at a loud crash, as if he’s a living creature. Interestingly, Risa’s father is depicted in Hirsch’s work as having a prosthetic leg, which is never directly addressed in the text—an effective narrative choice. Lavender shading is intriguingly used to indicate fear.

An often engaging work that may help to allay fears of readers young and old.

Kirkus Reviews