Penguin Problems by Jory John

Perfect for:
Ages: 3- the angst-ridden adult in your life
Occasion: Christmas, birthday, the office secret santa, stressed out friends

For our very first Halloween celebration on the west-side of Melbourne, the Bea and I headed into Yarraville to make the most of the Village's trick or treat party. Mid way into the hunt, we popped into our favourite bookstore to find that they'd run out of lollies.

Can you imagine? Such a terrible shame, as it meant we had to wait 5 minutes, pursing a few favourite titles, while they restocked the lolly jar. Needless to say we walked out of the store with a handful of jelly snakes....and two new picture books.

Asking for the best recommendation of the week, Penguin Parade was top of the list. And, my friends, it is a winner (sidenote: The Younger Sun has never let me down on the recommendation front - get in there for your Christmas shopping!).

I will be honest. This book probably appealed to me because I have Penguin Problems. I'm always hungry. And cold. And tired (so tired). Some days (ok, many days) the world drives me insane. I mean, I've had it up to HERE with people pressing the elevator button when I've literally JUST PUSHED IT.

Is it just me or is there a lot to complain about these days?

Oh man, this book makes me giggle. Rosie loves it too but is a little confused by the whole thing and I'm admittedly a little disconcerted hearing her yell "I HAVE SO MANY PROBLEMS!" at random intervals throughout the day, so I'd suggest three years and up.


But I think the real winner here are the adults in your life who, like me, know Penguin Problems only too well. We all need a reminder of how important mindfulness is and I'm sure we can all agree that we'd rather that reminder come from a walrus than a qualified professional. Right?

The illustrations are brilliant and the message - that life isn't so bad and things are always better than they seem - is very sweet (though the Penguin's reaction to this revelation made me laugh out loud). Add it to the Christmas stocking!