Dr. Annie's Bookshelf

A child psychologist's book recommendations for growth and healing

Diaphragmatic Breathing

Also known as belly breathing or taking deep breaths. It’s a major tool in emotion regulation (anger management, anxiety reduction, etc) and helps to down-regulate our nervous systems.

Allie All Along

Written and illustrated by Sarah Lynne Reul
Age range: Preschool through Kindergarten.
Recommended for: This book is a good introduction to anger management strategies for young children. An older brother helps his younger sister to calm down from a tantrum by coaching her through different coping skills. The book doesn’t ask that a child be able to identify their thoughts or feelings or what triggered the anger outburst; rather it non-judgmentally walks a child through a series of concrete skills to use to get back to feeling like themselves (e.g., squeezing a stuffed animal, pretending to blow out candles, counting backwards from 10).
Evidence-Based Practices: Diaphragmatic Breathing, Relaxation
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Roaring Mad Riley

An Anger Management Story for Kids

Written by Allison Szczecinski
Illustrated by Dean Gray
Age range: Preschool through 2nd grade.
Recommended for: Young children who lose their temper when something goes wrong will connect with this book and benefit from the anger-management strategies it teaches. The story normalizes and destigmatizes the feeling of anger, and it teaches several child-friendly skills to safely manage anger. Dinosaur lovers will particularly like this story.
Evidence-Based Practices: Emotional Literacy, Diaphragmatic Breathing, Relaxation
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Too Many Bubbles

A Story about Mindfulness

Written by Christine Peck and Mags DeRoma
Illustrated by Mags DeRoma
Age range: Preschool through 1st grade.
Recommended for: Young children who are experiencing unwanted thoughts (worries, intrusive thoughts as in OCD) and who will benefit from learning the techniques of diaphragmatic breathing and a mindfulness exercise of noting their thoughts and gently blowing them away as they exhale.
Evidence-Based Practices: Diaphragmatic Breathing, Mindfulness, Relaxation
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The Pout Pout Fish and the Mad Mad Day

Written by Deborah Diesen
Illustrated by Dan Hanna
Age range: Preschool through 3rd grade.
Recommended for: This fun rhyming story that’s a joy to read aloud helps children learn two anger management strategies to deal with a bad day: taking deep breaths and sharing about one’s feelings. It’s ideal for a child who needs a light touch when talking about these strategies (e.g., who might feel defensive or criticized with a more serious book).
Evidence-Based Practices: Diaphragmatic Breathing, Emotional Processing
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Amaya’s Anger

A Mindful Understanding of Strong Emotions

Written by Gabi Garcia
Illustrated by Marta Pineda
Age range: 1st through 4th grade.
Recommended for: This book is excellent to read with a child who is already able to label their feelings at least some of the time, and who will enjoy thinking more deeply about their emotions. It teaches children that anger is often the “crust” on top of a pie filled with other feelings that need to be noticed and expressed so that they don’t bubble up and explode. After talking with her Tia, Amaya realizes that she’s been getting angry a lot lately because she’s been feeling jealous of the attention her baby sister has been getting, so it’s particularly relevant for kids in a similar situation, but it’s certainly not limited to this scenario. The book also provides a convincing rationale for taking deep breaths and provides a nice visual for practicing this skill. It’s available in English and Spanish.
Evidence-Based Practices: Emotional Literacy, Emotional Processing, Diaphragmatic Breathing
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Anh’s Anger

Written by Gail Silver
Illustrated by Christianne Kromer
Age range: Kindergarten through 3rd grade.
Recommended for: This is a really lovely story about a boy and his grandfather that presents anger as a child’s friend who needs to be taken care of (danced with, relaxed with), rather than an enemy who needs to be controlled or conquered. For therapists, this book’s approach aligns well with Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) .
Evidence-Based Practices: Mindfulness, Diaphragmatic Breathing
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Steps and Stones

Written by Gail Silver
Illustrated by Christiane Kromer
Age range: Kindergarten through 3rd grade.
Recommended for: This sequel to Anh’s Anger tells the story of how Anh copes with an incident of rejection by his friends at recess. The story teaches the skill of a walking meditation (i.e., walking slowly, breathing in with one step and out on the next, while counting each step) as a way to soothe one’s anger. It’s a great tool for children to have in their “emotion regulation toolkit” because it doesn’t require any special equipment. A child can use this skill on a walk to the bathroom, to a drinking fountain, or around a backyard–anywhere that they can take a couple dozen steps.
Evidence-Based Practices: Diaphragmatic Breathing, Mindfulness
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