PPBF – When Things Aren’t Going Right, GO LEFT

When my children were young, we visited Disney World with dear friends. One of those friends had read a guide book and instructed the kids at every junction to “go left” to avoid the crowds. As that friend has a birthday next week, I thought this was the Perfect Picture Book to share as we celebrate.

Title: When Things Aren’t Going Right, GO LEFT

Written By: Marc Colagiovanni

Art By: Peter H. Reynolds

Publisher/Date: Orchard Books, an imprint of Scholastic Inc./2023

Suitable for Ages: 4-8

Themes/Topics: optimism, determination, perseverance, obstacles

Opening:

One day, for no particular reason, nothing was going right.

Brief Synopsis: When nothing seems to be going right, a young boy pivots and chooses to go left.

Links to Resources:

• What do you do when things aren’t going your way? Think of some ways to solve your problems, diminish your worries, or overcome your fears. Draw a picture that shows you doing something you’re afraid to do or that shows that problem solved;
• Try these games to distinguish between your right and left hands; which do you use most of the time?

Why I Like this Book:

As this charming picture book begins, an unnamed protagonist is having a bad day, “for no particular reason, nothing was going right.” Sound familiar? I think this is a problem that resonates with kids and adults of all ages.

But rather than complain or become immobilized over seemingly immense obstacles, the plucky child pivots and, one by one, sheds those things holding him back: worries, doubts, fears, and frustrations.

Using first-person point-of-view and addressing the reader directly, Colagiovanni creates a very relatable narrator. Reynolds furthers the relatability by showing the unnamed main character looking straight towards the reader during several key scenes. And to further help the reader understand what’s going on, Colagiovanni personifies the worries, doubts, fears, and frustrations, and Reynolds illustrates them as small monsters. I think any child will feel better about whatever is troubling them after reading When Things Aren’t Going Right, GO LEFT.

A Note about Craft:

I’m one of those writers who often starts with a title. And how I wish I had thought of the title of today’s Perfect Picture Book. Everyone knows that when things aren’t going well, you need to drop what’s holding you back and pivot. But how many people would pick up a picture book entitled, “When Things Aren’t Going Well, Pivot”? And how many kids would understand that? By incorporating a double entendre into the title, and weaving it through the text, the concept is so much more comprehensible – and fun!

This Perfect Picture Book entry is being added to Susanna Hill’s Perfect Picture Book list. Check out the other great picture books featured there!