Finding Grateful
Chronicle Books | 978-1797211237
April 16, 2024
What does grateful look like? How does it feel? How do you find it? Even in the face of a challenge, you don’t need a map: You just need to pay attention to the little things—a smile, a hug, the smell of newly cut grass—that add up to a sense of presence and hope.
With evocative, lyrical prose, this warmly illustrated children’s book is a reminder to pause, reflect, and take in the glimmers of positivity and connection that can be found amid even the most difficult circumstances. Both a timely meditation on finding gratitude in everyday moments and a timeless ode to the simple joy of truly being present.
Finding Grateful encourages readers to slow down and embrace the beauty of being right where they are.
White’s spare, lilting prose evokes the playfulness of this unexpected day with age-appropriate whimsy, using language such as “I tiptoe-lean” and “I stand tree-still.” Pray complements the text with soft, curved lines, a delicate pastel palette of pinks, blues, and greens, and varying perspectives that pinpoint tiny luminous details amid a bustling environment. This one’s just right for social-emotional storytimes.”
A pitch-perfect introduction to gratitude, reflection, and the art of noticing.
Kirkus Reviews, starred review
“When a red car breaks down and its passengers, a mother and child, start walking home, the child points anxiously toward the raised hood and the smoke, and the mother responds with a smile. She sees life as a search for gratitude, a conviction that grounds this tale by White (Dark on Light): “Mama says:/ you don’t need a map/ to find grateful.”
In mixed-media spreads by Pray (One Day), passersby… offer tangible warmth and presence to the child’s landscape. Pleasure in sensory perceptions—the scent of honeysuckle, toes freed from sandals, a hug after a fall—unite in the child’s final realization: “Maybe it is all of this/ that makes my heart as light as/ the sun… and then?/ I find it—/ grateful!”
Implicit in both artwork and text is the deep trust mother and child share, and the way that trust opens the younger to mindfulness.”
FINDING GRATEFUL song!
(video and song by Emily Arrow)
Take a closer look!
ACTIVITY KIT
(Right-click link to save to your computer.)
Gratitude Journal Page for Kids
(Right-click link to save to your computer.)
Coloring Page: Today I am Grateful
(Right-click link to save to your computer.)
Sing-a-long!
Finding Grateful song by Emily Arrow
Out and About
NYT Book Review: 10 Picture Books That Help Kids (and Adults) Celebrate Gratitude
