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meaghunt's review
3.0
Five-star illustrations with 1.5-star copy. I'm not sure "most people" can be categorized into a bucket of "good people" or "bad people." While this book tries to explain the gray area, I think it does a disservice to young readers by encouraging them that most people are "very good," and even those who aren't wish they were.
I think young readers understand nuance more than we credit them for, but this book doesn't rise to meet their complex questions and thinking.
I think young readers understand nuance more than we credit them for, but this book doesn't rise to meet their complex questions and thinking.
berlydawn2's review
2.0
A very black and white look at Good vs. Evil. I do take exception to "a person who is frowning and mad or sad, or mean is like a sour grape in a bunch of sweet grapes". Everyone knows that it is totally fine to be sad or mad. Invalidates feelings.
erica_s's review
1.0
Tilbury House offers another socially-conscious, didactic picture book - this one aimed to soothe preschool children’s fear of strangers and anxiety about a perceived prevalence of “people who do bad things.” Leannah’s purposeful text repeats that “most people are good people,” and Morris’ illustrations show many examples of goodness, with just one page spread briefly describing that some people “...yell bad words. They lie and steal. They bully and hurt and destroy.” While the author cleverly avoids the phrase “bad people,” all individual actions are judged as good or bad. This dichotomous simplicity fails to acknowledge common social conditions such as hunger or nuanced reality such as frustration at inequity - concepts that could help children understand or possibly connect with instead of fearing other human beings.
The crisp watercolor illustrations depict a clean, simplified town that includes diverse characters personifying good behavior - and one brunette, light-skinned boy committing the only bad behavior illustrated in the book - the theft of an apple. While successfully making the point that practically everyone “wants to be good,” while very few “want to be bad,” it may simultaneously exacerbate hostility toward and encourage harsh judgments about any person who actually does something “bad” - whether that is a child stealing nutritious food or a criminal convicted of harming someone.
Aiming to soothe the narrow audience of anxious children, it ultimately ignores the higher goal of restorative justice by failing to mention the universal needs of all people. If you believe that children are capable of feeling empathy with others once they understand the context of their behavior and their common needs, this book is not for you. If you are helping a child deal with the anxiety caused by observing actual bad behavior by people in positions of authority or by mobs carrying torches on the street, this will do nothing to assuage their valid concerns. Buy only where children are taught to exclude bad apples and fix the world with personal kindness, and where forgiveness and mutual interdependence are concepts too complex to discuss.
The crisp watercolor illustrations depict a clean, simplified town that includes diverse characters personifying good behavior - and one brunette, light-skinned boy committing the only bad behavior illustrated in the book - the theft of an apple. While successfully making the point that practically everyone “wants to be good,” while very few “want to be bad,” it may simultaneously exacerbate hostility toward and encourage harsh judgments about any person who actually does something “bad” - whether that is a child stealing nutritious food or a criminal convicted of harming someone.
Aiming to soothe the narrow audience of anxious children, it ultimately ignores the higher goal of restorative justice by failing to mention the universal needs of all people. If you believe that children are capable of feeling empathy with others once they understand the context of their behavior and their common needs, this book is not for you. If you are helping a child deal with the anxiety caused by observing actual bad behavior by people in positions of authority or by mobs carrying torches on the street, this will do nothing to assuage their valid concerns. Buy only where children are taught to exclude bad apples and fix the world with personal kindness, and where forgiveness and mutual interdependence are concepts too complex to discuss.
paigeturner22's review
4.0
I really enjoyed this book. As it states in the preface, it's so often that we get caught up in the horrible actions of a few, that we forget that really MOST people are good people.
This gentle reminder was a good read not only for kids, but for us adults who sometimes forget.
This gentle reminder was a good read not only for kids, but for us adults who sometimes forget.
mysteryofeternity's review against another edition
5.0
buku ini heartwarming bangettt. animasinya juga lucuu pollll. di masa berita-berita di luar nalar —yang kadang bikin parno sendiri, buku ini sangat bisa jadi penyegaran bahwa masih banyak orang baik dan sangat baik di dunia ini, dan mungkin kita adlah salah satunya?
yukk, jadi orang baik ituu ✧◝(⁰▿⁰)◜✧
yukk, jadi orang baik ituu ✧◝(⁰▿⁰)◜✧
catgirl_luna's review
hopeful
fast-paced
2.0
A good portion of this book had a decent message going. It had a lot of positivity and showed a great deal of care in the illustrations, showing diversity in family structures and humanity as a whole. Some lines could have been better and represented the diverse cast better, such as better lines to match with those illustrated with disabilities. The part where this book suffered and left a negative feeling in me was a specific passage that was dealing with the "bad people" part of the book, "A person who is frowning and mad, or sad, or mean is like a sour grape in a bunch of sweet grapes...Everyone looks nicer when they smile and laugh."
This hit me as encouraging children not to express any negative emotions, which are healthy to express. This bothered me a lot because healthy expression of these emotions as a child leads to a healthy expression as an adult. Telling children that these emotions would make them a 'bad person' is really detrimental to them and their emotional growth and development. This will give children unnecessary anxiety about being a 'good person' and masking or repressing the negative emotions because they don't want to be seen as a 'bad person'.
This hit me as encouraging children not to express any negative emotions, which are healthy to express. This bothered me a lot because healthy expression of these emotions as a child leads to a healthy expression as an adult. Telling children that these emotions would make them a 'bad person' is really detrimental to them and their emotional growth and development. This will give children unnecessary anxiety about being a 'good person' and masking or repressing the negative emotions because they don't want to be seen as a 'bad person'.
geekwayne's review
5.0
'Most People' by Michael Leannah with illustrations by Jennifer E. Morris is a book that feels like a breath of calm in troubled times.
This is a picture book for young children. The premise is that the bad people in the world are outnumbered by the good ones. Most people like to smile and hug and watch things grow. Some people do bad things and yell bad words, but usually you will then see someone who is trying to help.
It's such a gently told story. It reminds me in the best ways of how Fred Rogers used to talk. The pictures go along perfectly with the text. In a world of yelling, angry grownups, this is the book a child needs to read.
I received a review copy of this ebook from Tilbury House, Myrick Marketing & Media LLC, and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this ebook.
This is a picture book for young children. The premise is that the bad people in the world are outnumbered by the good ones. Most people like to smile and hug and watch things grow. Some people do bad things and yell bad words, but usually you will then see someone who is trying to help.
It's such a gently told story. It reminds me in the best ways of how Fred Rogers used to talk. The pictures go along perfectly with the text. In a world of yelling, angry grownups, this is the book a child needs to read.
I received a review copy of this ebook from Tilbury House, Myrick Marketing & Media LLC, and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this ebook.