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No Longer Alone
A hopeful book about big emotions from the Waterstones Children’s Laureate, Joseph Coelho.
Told through the voice of a little girl who is labelled as quiet and shy, No Longer Alone follows her tumult of emotions as she navigates the world around her. But when she finally shares her feelings and tells her Dad all the things that are worrying her, she no longer feels so alone.
Joseph's warm, authentic voice offers an insightful take on the way children feel and how they perceive the world and it's perfectly complimented by gorgeous artwork from rising-star illustrator, Robyn Wilson-Owen.
Joseph Coelho is the 2022–2024 Waterstones Children’s Laureate.
Told through the voice of a little girl who is labelled as quiet and shy, No Longer Alone follows her tumult of emotions as she navigates the world around her. But when she finally shares her feelings and tells her Dad all the things that are worrying her, she no longer feels so alone.
Joseph's warm, authentic voice offers an insightful take on the way children feel and how they perceive the world and it's perfectly complimented by gorgeous artwork from rising-star illustrator, Robyn Wilson-Owen.
Joseph Coelho is the 2022–2024 Waterstones Children’s Laureate.
- GenresPicture Books
32 pages, Paperback
Published September 15, 2022
60 people want to read
About the author
Joseph Coelho
88 books83 followersJoseph Coelho is a British poet and children's book author who was elected Children's Laureate in 2022.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
June 25, 2019
Book Reviewed on www.whisperingstories.com
No Longer Alone is about a little girl who feels alone. People say she is shy, she’s quiet, she doesn’t like to play but when she is in private she loves to do all these things as it makes her feel less alone.
One day her dad sits her down and talks to her about her feelings and she explains to him that she is sad and feels lonely. After their heart-to-heart, the little girl realises that she isn’t alone, it’s okay to be sad but it is also okay to go back to the way you were before you felt sad too.
This is a beautiful, charismatic book that would make a welcome read for any young child going through a hard time, loss of a loved one or simply just feeling sad or alone. I’m not saying this book will make them suddenly feel happy and jolly but it will make them understand that they are not the only ones going through a tough time.
Whilst we are never told why the little girl feels alone there are illustrations featuring the girls mum in photographs yet her mum is never mentioned so I interpreted it as the little girls mum had died and that was why she felt sad and alone.
This is a very heartfelt book. Through the carefully chosen words and beautiful full-page illustrations, this is a book that will touch you inside. It is a poignant story and one I believe will be cherished for years to come.
No Longer Alone is about a little girl who feels alone. People say she is shy, she’s quiet, she doesn’t like to play but when she is in private she loves to do all these things as it makes her feel less alone.
One day her dad sits her down and talks to her about her feelings and she explains to him that she is sad and feels lonely. After their heart-to-heart, the little girl realises that she isn’t alone, it’s okay to be sad but it is also okay to go back to the way you were before you felt sad too.
This is a beautiful, charismatic book that would make a welcome read for any young child going through a hard time, loss of a loved one or simply just feeling sad or alone. I’m not saying this book will make them suddenly feel happy and jolly but it will make them understand that they are not the only ones going through a tough time.
Whilst we are never told why the little girl feels alone there are illustrations featuring the girls mum in photographs yet her mum is never mentioned so I interpreted it as the little girls mum had died and that was why she felt sad and alone.
This is a very heartfelt book. Through the carefully chosen words and beautiful full-page illustrations, this is a book that will touch you inside. It is a poignant story and one I believe will be cherished for years to come.
July 27, 2021
This book is so thoughtfully written and beautifully illustrated. It is a touching story about loss, describing a young girl’s journey with her grief. Written in the first person, she explains that everyone thinks she has become shy and quiet. She voices her frustration that she isn’t, but that she just doesn’t feel like being loud and energetic around others right now. When she shares with her Dad about how unlike herself she is feeling she begins to feel less alone, and things begin to feel better for her. The book ends with her explaining that when she talks with her sisters and they “share what they feel” they “no longer feel alone”.
Despite clues alluding to such in the illustrations, the book never explicitly mentions that her mother has died and therefore the book becomes more relatable as most children will have experienced a hard time where they haven’t felt quite like themselves. The consistent use of hyperboles is engaging and the story’s repetitive structure will make it easier for children to become familiar with the story.
Despite such a sombre topic, the story has an uplifting tone reminding us of the importance of sharing how we feel, and listening to others when they choose to share with us. It also draws attention to how our feelings are constantly changing. Therefore, I think this book would be great to prompt discussions in PSHE.
I think this book would be best suited for a Year 2 class.
Despite clues alluding to such in the illustrations, the book never explicitly mentions that her mother has died and therefore the book becomes more relatable as most children will have experienced a hard time where they haven’t felt quite like themselves. The consistent use of hyperboles is engaging and the story’s repetitive structure will make it easier for children to become familiar with the story.
Despite such a sombre topic, the story has an uplifting tone reminding us of the importance of sharing how we feel, and listening to others when they choose to share with us. It also draws attention to how our feelings are constantly changing. Therefore, I think this book would be great to prompt discussions in PSHE.
I think this book would be best suited for a Year 2 class.
December 9, 2020
A really great book for tackling grief and how to regain the person you were prior to the bereavement. It's quite a specific book rather than touching upon grief so I wouldn't use it as a whole class read but is a nice book to read with those who are unfortunately in a similar situation experiencing the loss of a parent.
December 6, 2023
Joseph Coelho offers another emotional story – “No Longer Alone”, which unfolds around the feelings of a coloured girl.
The little girl's behaviour differs from the children's, so her nan, auntie and the teacher comment about her shyness and unwillingness to collaborate in a group. In an inner dialogue, the child believes she is confident and a talker, but times are challenging. The illustrations reveal the loss of a significant figure in the girl’s life.
Joyful and easy-going in the past, her father encouraged her to be herself. The communication leads the girl to express confusion and worries to Dad, who listens “like the ocean listens to raindrops”. The conversation has a therapeutic effect, and the story continues similarly with the girls' opposing reactions and behaviour.
Even the comments of relatives and the teacher felt a little strange; the story offers a solution. “No Longer Alone” can help children process grief and identify with feelings when they don’t feel themselves.
The little girl's behaviour differs from the children's, so her nan, auntie and the teacher comment about her shyness and unwillingness to collaborate in a group. In an inner dialogue, the child believes she is confident and a talker, but times are challenging. The illustrations reveal the loss of a significant figure in the girl’s life.
Joyful and easy-going in the past, her father encouraged her to be herself. The communication leads the girl to express confusion and worries to Dad, who listens “like the ocean listens to raindrops”. The conversation has a therapeutic effect, and the story continues similarly with the girls' opposing reactions and behaviour.
Even the comments of relatives and the teacher felt a little strange; the story offers a solution. “No Longer Alone” can help children process grief and identify with feelings when they don’t feel themselves.
March 15, 2021
About grieving the loss of a mother. Covers the healing process: you haven't changed but you don't feel like doing stuff. A bit of a fake-it-'til-you-make-it story for the middle of a time of grieving the death of a loved one.
January 9, 2020
A very sweet story of change and grief. Reminded me of "Cry Heart, But Do Not Break"
November 9, 2021
Beautiful book that my daughter asks me to read at least 5 times a day ❤️
November 14, 2019
Told through the voice of a little girl, this picturebook subtly covers deep themes of loss, grief, emotions and feeling alone.
The little girl is labelled as shy when she doesn’t talk, but she doesn’t feel like talking. She feels like talking when she is alone. The little girl is labelled as quiet, but she doesn’t feel like making noise. She is loud when she is alone. The little girl is labelled to not like running around, but she just doesn’t feel like it. She runs all around when she is alone. When the little girl is alone her imagination is vast and takes her on exciting and wonderful chatty, loud, active adventures.
When her dad notices her change in behaviour, he comes to talk to her she shares. She talks about what is worrying her, how she is feeling alone and what she doesn’t feel like doing at the moment. Her dad listens, and things start to feel better for the little girl. Soon, she feels like being loud, active and talkative around others again. The gorgeous illustrations support this narrative wonderfully, depicting the little girl's feelings and illustrating her imaginative adventures.
The messages covered in this book are, in my opinion, essential to share with children. Children may experience such feelings, their peers may experience such feeling and family and friends away from school might experience such emotions. Giving children a subtle stimulus to talk through feelings, talking about feelings and supporting each other is an unmissable learning experience for future positive strategies when hard times are experienced.
I also love how the little girl is identifying that she doesn’t want to at that time and is confident with this, she accepts that feeling this way is temporary and that one day she will feel like it again. As adults it is important to reflect on the labelling the little girl receives, she seems more mature in her understanding by identifying the ‘at the moment’, in comparison to the adults who labels her actions as personality traits. It is important to give children time to process emotions and understand that their behaviour, as a way of communicating their emotion, will change and to support them through this.
The value of talking through how we are feeling will always be a message to share.
The little girl is labelled as shy when she doesn’t talk, but she doesn’t feel like talking. She feels like talking when she is alone. The little girl is labelled as quiet, but she doesn’t feel like making noise. She is loud when she is alone. The little girl is labelled to not like running around, but she just doesn’t feel like it. She runs all around when she is alone. When the little girl is alone her imagination is vast and takes her on exciting and wonderful chatty, loud, active adventures.
When her dad notices her change in behaviour, he comes to talk to her she shares. She talks about what is worrying her, how she is feeling alone and what she doesn’t feel like doing at the moment. Her dad listens, and things start to feel better for the little girl. Soon, she feels like being loud, active and talkative around others again. The gorgeous illustrations support this narrative wonderfully, depicting the little girl's feelings and illustrating her imaginative adventures.
The messages covered in this book are, in my opinion, essential to share with children. Children may experience such feelings, their peers may experience such feeling and family and friends away from school might experience such emotions. Giving children a subtle stimulus to talk through feelings, talking about feelings and supporting each other is an unmissable learning experience for future positive strategies when hard times are experienced.
I also love how the little girl is identifying that she doesn’t want to at that time and is confident with this, she accepts that feeling this way is temporary and that one day she will feel like it again. As adults it is important to reflect on the labelling the little girl receives, she seems more mature in her understanding by identifying the ‘at the moment’, in comparison to the adults who labels her actions as personality traits. It is important to give children time to process emotions and understand that their behaviour, as a way of communicating their emotion, will change and to support them through this.
The value of talking through how we are feeling will always be a message to share.
September 10, 2019
A brilliant book. So touching.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews