Review: Pom Pom books for talking about emotions with preschoolers

‘That’s not nice to say!’

Big Girl got it straight away. I was reading her the hardcover picture book Pom Pom Gets the Grumps by Sophy Henn (Puffin, £10.99) which we received to review, and I wanted her to learn why it’s not worth being in a bad mood.

I liked this book as soon as I opened it. In fact, I liked the title so much I ended up reading it myself while three-year-old Big Girl was asleep. I instantly felt it would be good for us to read together.

It tells the story of the panda Pom Pom who wakes up on the wrong side of the bed, and keeps getting annoyed with his friends and family for the rest of the day. At the end he realises no one wants to play with him when he’s in a bad mood and it’s sad being grumpy.

I think many preschoolers can relate to being moody at times, and this Pom Pom book with contemporary illustrations gives parents an opportunity to talk to young children about feelings. After reading it I asked Big Girl if she thought it was nice for those around Pom Pom to have him saying ‘aargh’ every time they tried to be kind to him, and we could talk through how being in a bad mood affects others.

I also like the sister title, Pom Pom The Champion (Puffin, £10.99), which we also received to review, and this book is good for discussing the concept of winning and losing, another important theme for the target audience of three to five-year-olds.

Tags: Books, Chat throughs, Emotions, Feelings, Losing, Parenting, Pom Pom, Preschooler, Puffin Books, Tantrums, Winning