Joy

by Yasmeen Ismail, Jenni Desmond (Illustrator)

A delightfully upbeat read-aloud picture book, perfect to share with very young children.

“Bounce bounce, ding-a-ling, ring ring, let’s sing! I feel joy!” From an award-winning author and illustrator pairing comes an irresistibly energetic read-aloud picture book. Join the bouncy little kitten as she plays with her favourite toy and – uh oh – falls down with a trip-trip-slip. But with a little hug, a kiss and a squeeze, she’s going to be just fine. A truly joyful celebration of the love between parent and child.

Genres: Picture Books, Cats, Animals, Childrens, Storytime, Plays, Family

32 pages, Hardcover

First published June 1, 2019

About the author

Irish-born, Bristol-based Yasmeen Ismail is an award-winning author, illustrator and animator. Yasmeen studied at art school in her hometown, Dublin and graduated in 2002. After Yasmeen moved to London she lent her talents to many different projects ranging from advertising to children's publishing.

After moving to London and running a successful animation production company and having worked in varying capacities within it (Director, Designer, Creative, Animator, Producer, Script-writer) Yasmeen found herself writing and illustrating picture books. From her experience with scripts and storyboards she is familiar with writing narratives and working with story lines, and is especially acquainted with editing her work and writing creatively within boundaries. In turn, and as a result of her animating background, her illustrations are bright, fluid and full of energy and movement. She has a love of watercolours, inks and paints and is moving to all sorts of other mediums. Yasmeen has a propensity to experiment and expand in all areas of her work and is constantly trying new ways to improve her writing and drawing.

Currently Yasmeen is writing her fourth book for Bloomsbury UK, and her first for Walker Books, and is working on her first for Nosy Crow and another for Pan Macmillan. She has just completed 2 books for publishers in the USA and has more exciting projects lining up for 2015. She has written and illustrated several more picture books and activity books, which will be released in 2015, 2016 and 2017.

She has just moved to Bristol from London with her husband. They miss their cat very much and spend their evenings talking about her.

Reviews

[Mischenko · Rating 4 out of 5]

Joy by Yasmeen Ismail is a cute and easy read about a joyful kitten full of energy. This is perfect to enjoy with very young children, especially those who love cats or animals in general.

We have many cats, dogs, and currently we even have kittens, so my 6-year-old especially enjoyed seeing the mom cat in the book care for her little one so lovingly. Even though she can read herself, we enjoyed this one together. The illustrations by Jenni Desmond are simple yet beautiful, and combined with the changing text (which rhymes at times) keeps the book interesting even without much of a story.

The combination of dogs, cats, and kittens is always such a fun dynamic. Kittens truly are little bundles of joy.

4****

Thanks to NetGalley for sharing this book in exchange for my honest review.

[Cheri · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was looking for a potential book for the youngest, newest member of my family, who is too young to read at three months, but it’s never too young (in my opinion, anyway) to read books to little ones. It is an introduction to the world beyond, and these days who isn’t looking for something outside the walls of our home? Of course, she’s too young to understand why no one has come to visit her, she’s still living inside the bubble of Mommy and Daddy being home, all day, every day.

Her Mom is a cat lover, and they have cats, plural, and a big black dog that they more or less rescued, being told he was a Lab. He’s not, but he is the sweetest dog, and my Halle loves to snuggle up next to him, and he is as gentle with her as he is with the kitties they have. So, I am thinking this will be a good one for her. The illustrations as simple, but sweet, colourful, and show a typical day in the life of a kitten, the mother cat and a big dog that looks a little bit like the one they have. Shared through simple, alternating rhyming segments that change frequently - so parents won’t get tired of reading this too quickly.

It’s also a nice way to introduce the idea that sometimes, families can be made up differently than others, in this case that a dog and a cat and a kitten seemingly make up this “family” since there are no people in this story, but that depends on how you want to interpret this story.



Pub Date: 09 June 2020


Many thanks for the ARC from Candlewick Press

[Alexander Peterhans · Rating 4 out of 5]

A pretty simple story, told in rhyme, with plenty of lovely sounds to really sound out while reading aloud.

But let's face it, that's not primarily why we're here - the illustrations are almost dangerously cute. I love cats, I've always had cats, and these pictures do the feline race more than justice.

I tried reading the book to my cat, but that didn't do anything, what with him being a cat. Best keep this one for children.

(Kindly received an ARC from Candlewick Press through NetGalley)

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

Adorable. The stripy little blur of energy reminds me of my own kitty when she was a kitten.

[Etienne · Rating 3 out of 5]

A little story that talk about children «distancing» them self from their parents, going out exploring the world, something getting hurt but knowing that their parents will be there for them. All that, but with a very simple story with animals instead of humans. The message in it was good, but the way it was presented seems a bit light for me. It was okay but could have gone a little bit deeper (deep for children book that is for say).

[Morris · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a cat lover, this delightful book filled me with the joy it is depicting. The illustrations and rhyme perfectly capture the frenetic energy of a happy, playful kitten. The rhyme is fun and simple enough for even the smallest readers. Recommended for children and adults!

This unbiased review is based on a complimentary copy provided by the publisher.

[thewoollygeek (tea, cake, crochet & books) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Completely adorable and such a ‘joy’ to read, with wonderful messages of love and caring. Beautiful illustrations and great use of language to play with. I mean it’s a kitten as well so this household was in 100% you won us over Joy.

Perfect

[Mehsi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Een heerlijk vrolijk en blij boek over een schattig klein katje die de wereld aan het ontdekken is en dat gaat niet altijd zonder butsen en bumps. Gelukkig is moeders/vaders altijd in de buurt om de kleine weer op te beuren. En natuurlijk is het een kindje/kitten en die vergeten de pijntjes al heel snel. Om nog meer te spelen. Ik lag dubbel om wat voor ondeugende dingetjes ons katje uithaalde en ook hoe de hond reageerde op het kleintje.
De tekeningen waren zo-zo, op punten erg leuk, op punten toch niet helemaal mijn kopje thee.

[Storywraps · Rating 5 out of 5]

A little kitten celebrates her love for life by bouncing, scampering, chasing her ball of yarn, racing around and exhibiting joy in her journey. She is full of life and is a little bundle of furry energy. This delightful rhyming book is full of movement, action words and very expressive.

In the adorable kitten's free-spirited enthusiasm she hits a wall...oh my it's not a wall... it's the huge family dog's front leg. TRIP, TRIP, TRIP, SLIP, FLIP...... OH NO! The tiny feline catapults through the doggie door finding herself outside and then tumbles down a steep set of stairs. OUCH! Will a parent be there to hug, kiss, squeeze and console the frightened wee baby?

"Oh...
This is bad,
I feel sad.
Where's my mom?
Where's my dad? "

Award-winning author-illustrator pair Yasmeen Ismail and Jenni Desmond marry their creative talents together to create a heartwarming read-aloud story that kids will love. Full of simple, playful language and happy mixed-media illustrations this book is sure to be a hit for both young and old. Share it and feel the joy and love! I highly recommend this book.

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Onomatopoeia strong, but otherwise just a sweet and simple story about a dashing, crashing, crazy with joy kitten and her mom who is always there, "if you fall. All you have to do is call. There's nowhere that I'd rather be than holding you so close to me." (A big, sweet blue-grey dog is also standing watch throughout the book.)

The illustrations were the best part of the book for me, and littles may have fun tracing the dash journey of the kitten through the pages.

[Belinda Vlasbaard · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 sterren- Nederlandse hardcover

Een boek waar je blij van wordt!

Wat rolt daar voorbij? Een bal voor mij! Ik ben zo blij! Vrolijk stuitert een jong katje met zijn speeltje door het huis. Totdat… BANG BOING DING DOING KLAPPER-DE-KLAP KLAP. Au. BANG BOING DING DOING KLAPPER-DE-KLAP KLAP. Au.

O, o! Wie kan dit weer goedmaken?

Zo leuk om voor te lezen. Het helpt ook bij verwerking als je peuter of kleuter per ongeluk iets in huis heeft gebroken. Ongelukken gebeuren nu eenmaal.

[Sue Read · Rating 3 out of 5]

A rhyming picture book telling the joyful, playful adventures of a young kitten. Young children will enjoy the kitten's antics and the comfort found in Mum and Dad!

[Christiana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gots to show this to my story time peeps.

[Anthony · Rating 3 out of 5]

A tale of a non-stop energetic kitten, and the joy she finds in just being alive, and having the love of her parent.

[Dana Grimes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Adorable kitten antics but with very few words.

[Becky Loader · Rating 4 out of 5]

These lovely illustrations complete a truly happy text.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

A bit of fun

[CanadianReader · Rating 2 out of 5]

A rather insubstantial little picture book obviously geared for very young children, it concerns a kitten whose rambunctious play gets a little out of control. The book provides a reassuring message to young children that if they get hurt, mother will not be far away to help them up and kiss the hurt away. It’s cute enough, but not a book I’d really care to own.

[Amber Webb · Rating 3 out of 5]

Joy was the story or a cat chasing adventure and fun. The cat gets into all kinds of tricky situations but usually turns out okay. In the end she needs the comfort of her Momma and she's off and ready for adventure again. Great simple rhyming book with easy illustrations and fun for toddlers.

[Chloe Rose · Rating 4 out of 5]

Summary: This book was about a little grey and white kitten playing with different toys. The first toy he played with was a ball of yarn, and he tangled it all up on the furniture and the laundry. The next toy he played with was a bouncy ball, and he was having so much fun, until the big blue dog got intrigued. There is a lot of fun silly words like “zim-zam” and “clip-clop.” He feels immense joy as he plays with the toys. After the dog starts chasing him around with the ball, he slips down the stairs and out the doggy door. He then feels really sad and asks for his parents, cause he needs to feel better. His mother gives him hugs and licks his forehead to give him love and make him feel better. He then sees a butterfly and starts playing and experiencing joy again!

Likes/Dislikes: This book was honestly so very precious, and I loved getting to read it. I loved the simplistic art style and the meaningful moments from the pictures, despite it having very few words. The story could’ve had some more to it, but honestly the message was simple and sweet. Sometimes we get so caught up having fun, then we get hurt, but our parents are always looking out for us and making us feel better when we do get hurt.

Classroom Usage: I think I could use this in a 1st grade classroom and ask questions to the children like “who helps you feel better when you get hurt? What kind of toys do you like to play with?” I also think I could do a fun activity where we draw the kitty playing with a toy of the student’s choosing, and have them talk about what’s going on in their drawing.

[Annie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Originally published on my blog: Nonstop Reader.

Joy is a sweetly exuberant picture book for the youngest readers. Due out 9th June 2020 from Candlewick Press, it's 32 pages and will be available in hardcover and paperback formats.

The text by Yasmeen Ismail is gently rhyming and simple. It is fun to read aloud and will have the youngest helping to read it after a few readthroughs. The illustrations by Jenni Desmondsuit the text perfectly and lend a happy and bouncy activity to the read with lots of "zoom - zoom"ing and "crash-bang-wallop-bonk-a-donk"ing.

While not entirely appropriate for bedtime reading (too many bouncy bits), it would be a really superlative selection for afternoon or post-naptime or reading circle reading activities.

Fun and happy and beautifully illustrated along with some subtle lessons on trust and support from the ones who love and care for us.

Five stars. I heartily recommend this one.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.

[Reese Brimer · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was the story of a little kitten playing and he got stuck in the yarn he was playing with. He was making all sorts of sounds as he was trying to escape the self inflicted trap. At the end of the book, the kitten's mother came and made him feel all better. She reminds the kitten that if he is ever in trouble then he knows he can ask her for help.

While reading "Joy" I was smiling the entire time. The book was short to read but was a cute story. I love cats so this was why I chose this book in the first place. It took me around 5 minutes to read the entire book. I loved how at the end the author added in the part about the mother cat helping whenever she was needed.

I could use this book when teaching onomatopoeias because there were several sound words imbedded in the text. I think the children would thoroughly enjoy getting to participate in the book. There is also rhyming within the book which would also be helpful when teaching children the rules of rhyming. I would most likely use this in a kindergarten or first grade classroom. I believe this would not be interesting for children above first grade.

[Abigail · Rating 4 out of 5]

A bouncy kitten tears off in pursuit of her favorite toy in this aptly named picture book, causing lots of chaos and noise, and having oodles of fun in the process. When the family dog gives chase, and she tumbles down some stairs, she gets a scare, but mother is there to lick her clean and give comfort, giving her the sense of safety she needs to... go tearing off again!

Originally published in 2019, Joy is the second picture book I have read from author Yasmeen Ismail, after her 2015 I'm a Girl! , which she illustrated herself. Here the accompanying artwork is provided by Jenni Desmond, the creator of many wonderful books of her own. In any case, I found this one an absolute delight. Full of onomatopoeia, with a rolling rhythm and a bouncy rhyme, the text here just begs to be read aloud, while the mixed media artwork captures the charm of both feline and canine figures. This is a picture book suited for younger children—babied and toddlers—and I would recommend it as a read-aloud for them.

[Laura Evans · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a lovely fun children's book. The artwork was very creative with a lot of different mark making, creating a perfectly imperfect look to the pages that added to the clumsiness of the cat. I think it would be a very enjoyable book for quite young children, not too much text and lots of onomatopoeia to keep them interested. There was a good variety to the spreads, keeping the book interesting and it was nice with the use of pencil lines to track movements across pages, swell as adding some texture to parts with hand-written type. I think for an improvement it would have been nice to have a few more detailed backgrounds in the spread as there was a few to begin, though after that they seemed much more simplified. But that is more on my personal opinion as an illustrator, I'm sure little children are going to love the playfulness of this whole book! As I always love to mention, the end papers had a lovely, simple and textured design to them with the string filling the page, which I thought this was a lovely part of the book to pull out for an added design element.

[Bailey Ogle · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story is about a kitten who loves to play with her ball of yarn. She bounces, runs, rolls, and shakes while playing and making a mess in the house. Then the kitten trips and bumps into the dog. He thinks they're playing together until the kitten slips and tumbles down the stairs. The kitten is sad and scared because she can't find her parents. The kitten's mom shows up to comfort her and tells her that everything is going to be alright and asks her if she is okay. The mother reassures the kitten that she will be there when she is in trouble and all she has to do is ask for help. The story ends with the kitten running after her new favorite toy, a butterfly.

This story is so sweet! I enjoyed the sing-song flow of the literature and the watercolor illustrations were just darling!

As a future speech pathologist, I would use this book as a teaching tool with a client in elementary school who is receiving therapy for expressive/receptive language or literacy skills to target WH- questions, inferencing, and sequencing.

[Grace Tandy]

Joy is about a kitten how loves to play with yarn and jump around all day long. She makes a mess all around the house, crashing over clothes still drying and bouncing off the dog's head. She gets tremendous joy by jumping around and making a commotion. Her mom plays with her too. When there is too much playing she gets hurt, but her mom helps comfort her and make sure she is alright.

Joy was hard to enjoy because of the lack of a storyline. There was not much development of character before the kitten fell and had her mom comfort her. I would not use it in a classroom because I can not actively find a way to use this in my classroom.

Joy could be a fun read for any kid that might love to be active and jump around. It could also be an interesting read for any student that loves kittens.

[Melissa the Librarian · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is such a cute picture book. I love all the interesting sound words like "wringle, wrangle" and "zim-zam." The kitten captures the joy and mishaps of a child's energetic play, and I love all the dotted lines that convey a sense of motion.

It took me until the end of the book to realize the larger cat and dog were supposed to be the kitten's parents (I still find it a little weird that we're supposed to think the dog is the kitten's father). But overall, I think parents will appreciate (and recognize in their own children) the kitten's rambunctious day, while kids will love all the funny words.

Best part, the watercolor illustrations are lovely.

Thanks to NetGalley for a free book in exchange for an honest review.

[Margaret]

They are the ultimate companions. Their distinctive personalities provide us with constant comfort and laughter. Truthfully, without them our worlds would be incomplete. They make us wholly human.

For this reason, let us look at three publications in the last five months with feline or canine characters. In the first title, Joy (Candlewick Press, June 6, 2020) written by Yasmeen Ismail with illustrations by Jenni Desmond, a kitten shows us how to release merriment with total abandon. You'll be ready to join this frisky feline in mere seconds.

My full recommendation:https://librariansquest.blogspot.com/...

[The Library Lady · Rating 4 out of 5]

Okay, okay, full disclosure if you don't know me. I am a cat person. I like dogs well enough, but as an adult I've had cats since I was in grad school. On the other hand, I positively detest "Pete the Cat" and "Skippyjon Jones," so you know cats don't make me automatically love a book...

But I do love this one. Text that is largely onomatopoeiacal but rhymes smoothly! Wonderful pictures with great movement AND the world's cutest kitten. Plus a story that any little one can identify with, as the kitten plays with a toy, takes a tumble, is reassured by mom, and returns to its play.

This book is called "Joy" and joy is what it brought me!

[Rudolph Ronswik · Rating 5 out of 5]

Joy by Yasmeen Ismail is, well, Joy.

You know how prose almost always tells a story, but poetry forgoes story to tell you pure emotion? This book falls solidly on the poetry line for me. It just is joy. It’s not a story about being joyful, there isn’t any rising action or climax or falling action. It’s just a cat that is filled to the brim with emotion.

It also has very few words, and the words flow really well. Its imagery is easily readable from a distance, so I’ll go ahead and also recommend it as a storytime book for younger children. I’d also recommend it just to have as I’m a big fan of this sort of work, though I know a lot of people prioritize story over experience.