When We Are Kind

by Monique Gray Smith, Nicole Neidhardt (Illustrator)

Overview

When We Are Kind celebrates simple acts of everyday kindness and encourages children to explore how they feel when they initiate and receive acts of kindness in their lives. Celebrated author Monique Gray Smith has written many books on the topics of resilience and reconciliation and communicates an important message through carefully chosen words for readers of all ages. Beautifully illustrated by artist Nicole Neidhardt, this book encourages children to be kind to others and to themselves.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781459825222
Publisher:	Orca Book Publishers
Publication date:	10/13/2020
Pages:	32
Sales rank:	877,141
Product dimensions:	9.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.38(d)
Lexile:	NP (what's this?)
Age Range:	3 - 5 Years

About the Author

International speaker and award-winning author Monique Gray Smith is a mixed-heritage woman of Cree, Lakota and Scottish ancestry. She wrote When We Are Kind to prompt a dialog among young people, their care providers and educators about kindness and the importance of the connections children make with their friends, classmates and families. Monique's picture book My Heart Fills With Happiness won the Christie Harris Illustrated Children's Literature Prize and was selected as the TD Grade One Giveaway Book for all first-grade students in Canada in 2019. She lives in Victoria, British Columbia, with her family.

Nicole Neidhardt is Diné (Navajo) of the Kiiyaa'áanii Clan and is from Santa Fe, New Mexico. She has a BFA from the University of Victoria and is working on her MFA at OCAD University in Toronto. Nicole’s Diné identity is the heart of her practice, which encompasses installation, illustration and large-scale murals. She currently lives in Toronto.

Editorial Reviews

10/26/2020

This gentle picture book extols the virtues of kindness in spare prose relayed through a first-person perspective. Smith (who is of Cree, Lakota, and Scottish descent) employs the refrain “I am kind when” throughout the book’s first half, showcasing different methods of helpfulness and generosity: “I am kind when I/ bring food to my Elders.” The second half, in phrases beginning “I feel,” emphasizes how the speaker feels when kindness is reciprocated: “I feel loved/ when my Elders are kind to me.” Streamlined digital illustrations by Neidhardt (who has maternal Diné heritage) portray an inclusive cast interacting, notably centering Indigenous families and characters of color in personal and communal activities—and encouraging readers to evaluate their actions toward others. Ages 3–5. (Oct.)

Publishers Weekly

Lovely…A gentle message that shows how kindness connects us and reinforces our deep relations.

Toronto Star

Visually appealing at every turn and offering up details in clothing and surroundings, there is much to see here. The words inspire questions and memories about being kind in the world, and with family and friends.

Sal's Fiction Addiction

Using minimal text, the message of kindness is delivered in illustrations that are beautiful, colorful and detailed. This title is highly recommended for use in preschool and primary or elementary classrooms and libraries.

Must Read Literature

★ “Simple, yet powerful...This gentle book is inspiring for children and adults and is highly recommended to have at home and in public and school libraries.

Red Leaf Literature selection Canadian Children's Book News

A perfect addition to your bedtime routine, and would make a great gift for every teacher and librarian your child knows, so each school has a copy upon reopening.

them.

An accessible picture book that will work well as a read-aloud in a group or for quiet reading alone. Whether at home or in the classroom, its pleasing repetition of phrases. such as 'I am kind when' and 'I feel', will appeal to young readers and invite re-reading. Highly Recommended.

CM: Canadian Review of Materials

2020-06-30
Distinctive illustrations amplify a pointed moral lesson in this Native picture book for kids.

An intergenerational Native family sits in a drum circle on the cover, suggesting the importance of cooperation and community that’s elucidated in the pages that follow. What does it mean to be kind to your family, your elders, your environment, and yourself? In simple, repetitive language, Smith (who is of mixed Cree, Lakota, and Scottish heritage) explores how our behaving with generosity toward others makes us feel happy in return. By helping with laundry, walking the family dog, sharing with friends, and taking food to our elders, we learn that the gift of kindness involves giving and receiving. The first half of the book is constructed entirely on the phrase “I am kind when,” while the second half uses “I feel.” Strung together, the simple statements have the resonance of affirmations and establish a clear chain of connectedness, but there is no story arc in the conventional sense. What the book lacks in plot, it makes up for with its illustrations. Drawing on her mother’s Diné traditions, Neidhardt prominently features Navajo hair buns, moccasins, and baskets; a panoply of Indigenous characters—including one child who uses a wheelchair—is featured in rich detail.A French edition, translated by Rachel Martinez, publishes simultaneously.

A visual feast for families interested in seeing the Native world through small, kind deeds. (Picture book. 3-5)

Kirkus Reviews

A perfect addition to your bedtime routine, and would make a great gift for every teacher and librarian your child knows, so each school has a copy upon reopening.

Them.

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