A Child's Happy Heart

A Child's Happy Heart is a cheerful picturebook about keeping track of what's really important in life: the gentle powers of wisdom and love that can make one truly happy. Following adventures of Khobi, a young native boy from the Arctic, and his best friend Hero, a white dog with a thick coat, A Child's Happy Heart shows Khobi and Hero discovering the strange new city with stoplights, friends... and bullies. Khobi and Hero have come to share the secret of a happy heart. When Khobi's new friends tell him about learns of the bullies who always seem to be angry even though they own so many things, Khobi explains that the bullies have angry hearts. "They don't understand. Things can't make you happy. There are many ways to be rich. My riches come from a happy heart." The joys of helping one another, learning to treat others as one would like to be treated, and discovering happiness through love and friendship are a central theme in this upbeat picturebook, with a message that desperately needs to be shared in today's overly materialistic society.

This story is full of wonderful messages for children and adults. The author's love of children comes alive in the written story and the illustrations tie it all together. We anxiously await more books in this series, as promised in this book. Thanks, Sue, for such a down-to-earth story.