Are You Emotions Like Mine?
by Chitwan Mittal and Shruti Hemani
Publisher: AdiDev Press (2021)
“When we all talk about Child Psychology, the focus should be on the child and then the
psychology”.
Sigmund Freud always emphasised that the first five years of a child are the most crucial to development – both physically and mentally. In the age of distraction, social media, work pressure and nuclear families, children often relegate themselves instead of talking with parents about how they feel. In majority of the cases, given the age of the child, many can’t express what they feel. This is because language is still limited for very young children. The solution to this was brought out by this beautifully illustrated book that helps bridge the communication of feelings between the parent and child.
One emotion in a word or two and the expression is illustrated in each page. The girl and her pet lion are both expressing the emotions and mirroring them. For very young children identifying the emotion they feel helps parents to know their mood at that moment. It can also be helpful for the parent to communicate with the child how they feel too. For a little older kids, the solution of intense emotional upheavals is provided by being still and sleeping.
As a mother, I appreciate the thought behind the book. It gives South Asian parents a great way to enable their children to talk, communicate and believe that expressing emotions is not wrong. Everyone feels it. This is emphasised with the question – Are your Emotions Like Mine? – and a very apt title too.
Overall, the book gives a very clear way for the child to express and the parents to understand the child better. It works as a great communicative tool. If introduced in preschools and nursery classes, it can be helpful to educators tool.
This book is one of the many books by Chitwan Mittal. She has to her credit books like My First Hanuman Chalisa and Learning to Be Series.