جک و نگرانی گنده‌بک

by Sam Zuppardi, مریم بنایی (Translator )

A touching and reassuring story about the jitters associated with first experiences — and the satisfaction that comes with conquering your fears.

Jack loves playing the trumpet, and for weeks he’s been looking forward to taking part in his first concert. But on the morning of the big day, Jack finds he has a Worry. And his Worry starts to grow. Even when Jack’s mother calls him for a special breakfast, even when he hides under the bed or runs around the yard, his Worry follows him. Suddenly, when it’s almost time to leave for the concert, Jack finds it’s all too much. For anyone who’s ever been afraid of failing at something new, this book offers just what’s needed to shrink a Worry down to size.

Genres: Picture Books, Music, Childrens, Mental Health, Storytime, Fiction, Emotion

32 pages

First published April 12, 2016

About the author

Sam Zuppardi says he used to draw cartoons at school when he was supposed to be doing work. Among other things, he has worked in a book warehouse, a bookstore, and a toy store, and is currently working with children. The Nowhere Box is his first picture book. He lives in England.

Reviews

[Sandy Brehl]

This is a must-have book for music teachers and others who works with kids (which would be all of us, of course). I appreciated the use of "worry" rather than "fear", the visual representation changing in size throughout Jack's process. I especially appreciated that he shared his new insights with his concert-mates.

[Fatemehshahvari]

شبیه کتاب "مهمانی به نام غصه" بود.

[Gita]

خیلی زیاد دوستش داشتم و با جک همذات‌پنداری می‌کردم. نگرانی بزرگِ قبل از اجرا، نگرانی بزرگ قبل از کنکور، نگرانی بزرگ قبل از المپیاد؛ و این جمله که جک توانست بیانش کند و من نه: «نگرانم اشتباه کنم و تو دیگر دوستم نداشته باشی.»

۴۰۲/۴/۱۵
امروز رفتم همانجا که دو سال پیش کنکور دادم. «گویی دایره‌ای‌ست این جهان...»

[Kimberly]

This book is a wonderful tool to help kids talk about their worries and fears. Jack’s predicament is very relatable.

[Jana]

I think this is a really nice picture book that shows young readers that everyone experiences worries or jitters at one time or another. Jack feels worried about playing his trumpet in the upcoming school concert. The more he tries to ignore his worry, the worse it becomes. When he shares his worry with his mother, she helps him feel a bit better. This book kind of reminds me of What Do You Do With a Problem by Kobi Yamada.

[Carrie]

"What do you do when your Worry just won't go away?"

A cathartic read for children encouraging them to not hide from their Worry and to find the words to express their emotions as the only remedy for making the Worry shrink instead of growing unattended.

[Danielle]

Feels sensitive and true. Good resource for pre-event jitters.

[Jordana]

Such a sweet, reassuring book that can help children identify their worries. :)

[Safa]

مقدمه مترجم:
آوای خوشگلم، تو هنرش رو داری که از پس همه ی نگرانی هات بربیای و شاد زندگی کنی. میشه به منم یاد بدی؟ خاله مریمت.

افرین مریم بنایی، آفرین

یه جا کاراکتر کتاب، جک، نگرانیش رو راجب کنسرت پیش رو با مامانش مطرح میکنه و مادر اینطور جواب میده:
- مامان جک گفت: این برای خودش یک نگرانی حسابیه. خوشحالم که به من گفتی. تازه میدونی؟ کنسرت برای این نیست که درستِ درست بنوازی. کنسرت برای اینه که بهت خوش بگذره و چیزی رو که عاشقشی با آدم هایی که عاشقت هستن تقسیم کنی . تازه اگه دونه به دونه نت هات رو هم غلط بزنی، من باز عاشقت میمونم .


کتاب های کودک شاهکار نیستن ؟

[Jack & Lily Wills]

I chose this book because of the name Jack - but I do think this would be a really great book for a kid who is anxious about an upcoming event (recital, performance, etc.) I like the drawings a lot and it had a great message!

[Amirabbas ghaderi]

خیلی شبیه مهمانی به نام غصه بود ولی به جای غم نگرانی به سراغش اومده بود.

[Mobina]

خیلی کتاب قشنگی بود. کتاب هایی که اینجوری برای بچه ها راهکار میدن خیلی مفیدن کمک میکنه که تا بزرگسالی نگرانی شون باهاشون نیاد.

[David Freudenburg]

This moralistic story teaches children not to worry. Jack is worried that he will make a mistake when he plays his trumpet in the school concert. Worry then becomes a character who follows Jack everywhere and grows larger on each page. The acrylic illustrations are gorgeous and very well done. It is particularly amazing to see how concepts like "Music" and "Worry" are painted and presented in a visual form.

[Judy]

Now when I worry, I will just imagine it as a giant dark dust bunny. Nicely done.

[Amy Hesterman]

The perfect book for all of our little friends who are approaching their first musical performances this holiday season. And some big friends too.

[Annie Lilley]

While Little Bear was playing with the trains, and Baby Sage was desperately trying to keep up, I happened to notice this book on the library shelves.

As someone who was a very anxious child, I would have very much like this book when I was little. Jack's Worry manifests as a blue scribble-y sort of ball, the kind that captures the strange buzz-y sort of feeling of worry. As his worry grows, the Worry literally grows, until finally the Worry and Jack are all that you can see.

Jack has a concert that night, and he's worried that he's going to mess up. No matter what he does, he can't seem to escape the Worry. Even doing the things he normally loves can't seem to make it go away.

It isn't until he reaches out for help that he is able to calm the Worry. It's gotten so big and so out of control that all he can think is that if he messes up tonight, his mother won't love him anymore.

When I first read that page, I was shocked. What a big worry for a children's picture book??
But then I sat with it, for just a moment, before we continued to read.

Isn't that the whole point? When children are afraid, the world seems so big and scary. They haven't yet experienced enough to know that can't happen.
Yes, children don't have the same fears as adults, because they haven't learned what things are really out there.
But, in many ways, their fear is so much worse, because they just don't know what can and can't happen.
And that seems a lot scarier to me.

His mom sits down with him and explains that he couldn't lose her love, not if he played every single note wrong tonight. And that playing music isn't about being perfect, it's about doing something you love, and sharing it with the people you love.

And with that, his Worry starts to shrink. It's not automatically gone, but it is smaller. Until by the time he enters the school doors and sees all his friends, and it finally disappears.

But look! All his friends have various sized Worries as well! And using the tools his mother gave him, Jack goes around to his friends, and helps them tame their Worries as well.

Jack's Worry
5/5 🐻

CW: None

[AJ Hollis]

Jack loves playing the trumpet, and for weeks he’s been looking forward to playing for his mom. But on the morning of the day he was going to play, he realized he had a Worry. His Worry followed him everywhere and it began to grow. He couldn't seem to get rid of it or explain it. Suddenly, when it’s almost time to leave for the concert Jack breaks down and reveals that he is scared he will let his mother down. So his mother reassures him that she will still love him no matter what. So he went and left his worry behind.

The theme highlights jitters associated with first experiences and then the joy of overcoming those fears.

As I read I was reminded of how meaningful encouragement can be which made me joyful to think "how can I encourage someone today?"

I recommend this book because of the importance of conquering fears and for anyone who’s ever been afraid of failing at something new, this book offers just what’s needed to shrink a Worry down.

[Christy]

A touching and reassuring story about the jitters associated with first experiences — and the satisfaction that comes with conquering your fears.

Jack loves playing the trumpet, and for weeks he’s been looking forward to taking part in his first concert. But on the morning of the big day, Jack finds he has a Worry. And his Worry starts to grow. Even when Jack’s mother calls him for a special breakfast, even when he hides under the bed or runs around the yard, his Worry follows him. Suddenly, when it’s almost time to leave for the concert, Jack finds it’s all too much. For anyone who’s ever been afraid of failing at something new, this book offers just what’s needed to shrink a Worry down to size.

[Elizabeth]

Jack's worry shrinks when he shares it with his mom and they talk it out. (He is afraid of playing his trumpet at a concert because he might make mistakes.) Because his worry has dissipated, he is able to go on and encourage his fellow players at the concert so their worries shrink, too. I loved how obvious this book was to my youngest story time patrons as they watched the worry grow big and small based upon the situation.

[Cheriee Weichel]

Jack loves to play his trumpet, but on the day of his first concert, he wakes up with a worry. As Jack tries to avoid it, his worry becomes bigger and bigger. When his worry becomes overwhelming, Jack finally breaks down and tells his mother. When she helps him think about the concert as having fun and sharing something you love instead, his worry becomes small.

[Lara]

Great visual story for facing anxiety, which continues to grow unless we face it. I'm a worrier too, so I liked the use of Worry instead of Fear - subtle difference. Would be a good addition to a story time on being brave, on worries, on music.

[Taylor Diehl]

This was such a wonderful children’s book! Teaching kids to face their worries and find words to express them, and that real love does not require perfection. Almost made me cry. The kid’s worry felt real for me, even as an adult.

[Stacey]

I also love playing my trumpet and am familiar with the anxiety of performance. While Jack's worries are different than mine were, I liked how this book approaches reducing worry. A nice title for anxious kids.

[Colleen]

This book stood out to me because of the way the illustrations really captured the feeling of worry - anxious squiggly lines and a growing dark cloud. Jack tries some good things to escape his worry but it's only when he faces it that he can move past it.

[Jessica]

Performance anxiety for musicians is a very real, very frustrating thing. I'm glad there is a book about it for children. I'm also glad Jack talked to his mom, and that we saw the other children were having similar feelings.

[Lori]

Great little story.

[Lkking]

Children's book but could be used for all ages regarding situational worry and anxiety.

[Neurocomp]

great story.

[Sara]

Tackles a heavy theme with ease and perfectly appropriate for young readers.

[Sadia]

Almost a five because I'm a sucker for perfect graphics. But the message is really good and easy to get across to young kids.