Susan, who is a friend of mine, recommended books by the author, John Burningham, for my daughter and I to read together. The first one I found and brought into Owls Hollow was, Edwardo - The Horriblest Boy in the Whole Wide World.
Burningham is quite clever. He tells a story that is funny, heart-warming, sad and thought-provoking. My daughter loves it and so do I. It works on many levels. His illustrations are simple and stunning at the same time.
Random House describes the book as follows: "Edwardo is an ordinary boy who does his best to live up to grown-ups' expectations. So when they rant at him for being the clumsiest, noisiest, nastiest, cruelest, messiest, and dirtiest boy in the whole wide world, he becomes all those things with a vengence, thus earning the title of the horriblest boy in the whole wide world. How Edwardo becomes the nicest boy in the whole wide world will be appreciated by ordinary little boys everywhere. "
Adults are always telling Edwardo that he is "bad", so he becomes "bad". Until one day a man looks at things a little differently and everything changes for Edwardo and the people in his life. Through the power of positive reinforcement life changes.
As a parent, I see this book as an important reminder of switching things up when I'm grouchy or losing patience, to breathe and try to see things in a positive light. I recommend it for all adults (and children) to read.
Life really is all about how you look at it....
