When Sophie Gets Angry -- Really, Really Angry...

Happily absorbed in her play, Sophie is unprepared when her sister grabs her toy gorilla, and absolutely infuriated when her mother points out that it is her sister's turn to play with it. Boiling over with rage, feeling like a volcano about to explode, Sophie does what she always does when she gets very, very angry: she runs...

Chosen as a Caldecott Honor book in 2000, When Sophie Gets Angry -- Really, Really Angry is illustrated in vibrant, primary colors that perfectly capture the emotional register of each scene. Sophie begins the story outlined in a happy yellow, but her quick descent into anger is accompanied by a red halo that grows with her rage, becoming almost another being - a red shadow being - as she throws a temper tantrum. show more As she slowly calms down, soothed by the quiet beauty of the natural world around her, her outline returns to less strident hues.

I really appreciated Molly Bang's use of color here, finding it very astute, and think her artwork will grab young readers' attention. That said, I have to agree with my friend Chandra, in wondering if it was really worthy of a nod from the Caldecott committee. I also had some mixed feelings about the story itself. While I applaud Bang's sympathetic portrait of a child's emotions, I wasn't sure I approved of the way in which the sibling conflict was resolved. I don't know about you, but when I get very angry, removing myself from the situation and calming down - while absolutely necessary - are just the first step. There needs to be discussion, possibly apologies, before everything is back to "normal." Still, despite these reservations, I think this is a good title to use with children, to explore handling strong anger. show less

When Sophie Gets Angry— Really, Really, Angry is a beautifully written story about expressing emotions and coping with anger. Sophie gets angry when her sister takes a toy gorilla away from her. She begins to rage; acting uncontrollably, “She roars a red roar,” “Sophie is a volcano ready to explode.” But then, she runs and runs, cries, explores nature, calms down, and heads for home. The illustrations parallel Sophie’s anger in broad strokes of red and orange and as her anger subsides, the colors become more cool and calm in the hues of blue and green. The story implies that it is good to have emotions, but we need to be in control of them so we don’t hurt others with our actions and words.

I love how this book incorporates the message that different people handle anger in different ways... and the idea that there are peaceful, appropriate ways to deal with anger. This particular example of how Sophie deals with her anger creates nice visuals for children who have seen their peers "run", but don't really know why they run or what they do. Having the understanding that some people just need some time and space to calm down helps children to be more accepting of those who do things in a different way.

When Sophie and her sister get into a fight over whose turn it is to play with a specific toy, Sophie loses it. Her anger gets to the point that she runs away from the house and into a tree nearby, looking out over all the natural world around her. Here she finds peace and returns home calm.

While I appreciate that this book looks at children's emotions and acknowledges that difficult ones like anger can often be a part of a child's day, I find it difficult to love this book as much as others do. Yes, Sophie does deal with her anger in a nonviolent manner and the fact that she can self-soothe to a degree is admirable. But I dislike greatly that her way of dealing with anger is to literally run away from the situation without a word to show more others and to come back in later without an apology for her behavior. I'm just not sure that's the way I'd want to teach kids to deal with their frustration.

That all being said, however, I find that kids really do connect with this book. I recently read this with my 4-year-old niece, and she was interested in going back to this title after we finished it to examine the beginning again. I used to have a print copy/audio book version in my kindergarten class, and the kids all loved to read/listen to this one over and over again. So clearly this title does strike a chord with kids, who frequently get angry with one another over small incidents like sharing toys. I just wish it presented a better response than simply running away from one's problems. show less

Sophie gets REALLY angry when her sister takes her gorilla and Sophie falls over a truck to get it back. She gets SO angry that she runs off into the woods. After running for a while, and crying for a while, Sophie finds comfort in the peace of nature and she looks around the world. When she returns home, she is welcomed back by her family, and she notices that she isn't even mad anymore. This book is great for teaching young children that their emotions are ok, and even how to deal with them. When Sophie gets angry, she runs, she cries, and she spends some time by herself just thinking. These are all great strategies for helping children deal with those big emotions, like anger or sadness. Molly Bang's illustrations are great examples show more of onomatopoeia as well, most pages include at least one example, such as a huge gout of red flame erupting from Sophie's mouth that says ROAR. show less

There definitely are many many other better books about dealing with anger, but I still do enjoy this book. I'm particularly drawn in by the vibrant illustrations and the message that your family still loves you no matter how angry you get. Storming out as a child into the forest by yourself without letting anyone know isn't the best coping mechanism for being angry over an altercation about sharing toys, but the part where she sits on the beech tree realizing how insignificant her problems are compared to the wide world is lovely. Nature solves a lot of our problems. I also noticed how everything is outlined in different colors based on their mood or energy; the toys are outlined red when Sophie is angry.

An excellent read to examine managing one's emotions and the power of nature to calm and heal. Sophie EXPLODES and then runs to nature to find her inner calm. The book describes and illustrates so well how it feels to be angry and lose control and the stages after the crisis. I have used this book over the years as a read aloud when there is a child in the class who is quick tempered, and it always helps them to feel understood. It is so important for children to name their feelings and to be taught that feelings are not right or wrong. Research has shown that the common factor among violent criminals is SHAME! We must make sure not to shame children for how they feel, but instead to support them in learning to self-regulate, show more communicate and problem solve. show less