In this wordless graphic picture book, a young boy feels alone with his worries. He isn't fitting in well at school. His grades are slipping. He's even lashing out at those who love him. Talented Australian artist Mel Tregonning created Small Things in the final year of her life. In her emotionally rich illustrations, the boy's worries manifest as tiny beings that crowd around him constantly, overwhelming him and even gnawing away at his very self. The striking imagery is all the more powerful when, overcoming his isolation at last, the boy discovers that the tiny demons of worry surround everyone, even those who seem to have it all together. This short but hard-hitting wordless graphic picture book gets to the heart of childhood anxiety and opens the way for dialogue about acceptance, vulnerability, and the universal experience of worry.

 

This book is the winner of numerous awards. It was recognised by the Gold Ledger Award. It was recognised in the Best Kids Chapter Books and Novels category by the Children's Book Review. It also was recognised in the Best New Books for Tweens & Preteens category by the Children's Book Review. It was recognised in the Ages 6-8 Years category by the Usbby Oustanding International Books. Also it was recognised in the Blogger Besty Bird's Books with a Message category by the School Library Journal Awards. It was recognised in the Blogger Betsy Bird's Wordless Picture Books category by the School Library Journal Awards. It was recognised in the Best Designed Children's Illustrated Book category by the Australian Book Design Award. It was recognised in the Graphic Novel category by the Foreword Indies Book of the Year Award. It was recognised by the Horn Book Award. Presented annually since 1967 by the Boston Globe and Horn Book Magazine for excellence in childrens and young adult literature. This honour is granted in the three categories of Fiction and Poetry, Non-fiction, and Picture Book. It was recognised in the Spring into New Book Recommendations category by the Ncte Awards.

This book has been graded for interest at 8-12 years.

There are 40 pages in this book. This is a chapter book. Publishers market early chapter books at readers aged 6-10 years. This book was published 2018 by Pajama Press .

Born in Perth, Western Australia, Mel Tregonning was a published cartoonist since primary school and began a long-running comic strip in a national magazine at 16. She obtained a Bachelor of Arts in Graphic Design at Curtin University and won the international Illustrators of the Future competition in 2006. She was an in-house illustrator for RIC Publications before taking time to work on her graphic picture book Small Things. Sadly, Mel passed away in 2014, leaving an incredible body of work Born in Perth, Western Australia, Mel Tregonning was a published cartoonist since primary school and began a long-running comic strip in a national magazine at 16. She obtained a Bachelor of Arts in Graphic Design at Curtin University and won the international Illustrators of the Future competition in 2006. She was an in-house illustrator for RIC Publications before taking time to work on her graphic picture book Small Things. Sadly, Mel passed away in 2014, leaving an incredible body of work