Kirkus calls Susan Verde”s picture book WHO I AM: WORDS I TELL MYSELF “an inspiring, delightful, uplifting must-read” in this starred review!

You are your loudest cheerleader. In a world filled with negativity, it’s important that children say positive things to themselves to quell the internal voices trying to make them believe they’re anything less than kind and exceptional. This inspiring book gently teaches kids to use positive affirmations to remember they’re actually terrific. “It’s with these words that I am describing the real me. With these words, I know who I am.” Verde doesn’t suggest it’s wrong to experience unhappy feelings, however: “I am human. I am allowed to feel. I am supposed to feel.” It’s OK to talk about feelings, too, for anxious or other troublesome emotions will pass. As for mistakes, failings, and other challenges? There’s a positive angle to them, too. This work contains numerous examples of empowering affirmations kids should learn to tell themselves, but, as the preface sagely advises adults, grown-ups should use this volume so that little ones will hear the positive vocabulary they must internalize to be able to affirm their own value. The delightful, uplifting illustrations, created with traditional and digital inks, plus gouache, watercolors, and tea, feature active, racially diverse children, sometimes appearing in groups, sometimes alone or in meditative poses. A must-read that will remind all kids of just how great they are.