Some Things Are Scary

Written by: Florence Parry Heide




First line: Getting hugged by someone you don't like is scary.

Why you should read this book: It's a list of events that can be scary: some of them are seriously nail-biting, and others are of the variety of childhood fears that are really only mortifying to those who haven't reached adolescence yet. This is a book without a resolution--there is no "but" to the narrative, which ends with "Knowing you're going to grow up to be a grownup is scary"--but Jules Feiffer's cartoonish illustrations do their best to communicate the humor inherent in these fears. Pain, uncertainty, loss, and humiliation are only some of the fears mentioned in this book.

Why you shouldn't read this book: Highly suggestible kids may find themselves confronted with brand new fears they hadn't previously considered.