The idea for the book is great. I love that it asks the kids to get involved with the story by mimicking the animals. The art was also incredibly cute and displayed their emotions perfectly. The rhyming pattern tripped us up several times while reading. It doesn't always let you get into a good reading rhythm. I also had mixed feelings on the writing at the bottom explaining the emotions. My child didn't care at all about it but as a parent I think it could make a good conversation starter with your kids.

A super cute introduction to feelings! Animals Feeling Like Us helps the child learn and understand their complicated emotions by seeing them depicted on their favorite animals!

The importance of emotional intelligence cannot be stressed enough. This book is a great find for an introduction to emotions for toddlers. The use of alliterations and the illustration style were very fun.

I will be purchasing this on release day and recommending to all of my friends with small children.

Thank you to BooksGoSocial, R.M. Smith, and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

R.M. Smith's wonderful illustrations go so well with the text of this book, talking about the different feelings we all experience! The expressions on each animal is so emotive and it invites the readers to try to replicate the same expression. It'd be a wonderful book to read with a child! The book also would a be a good introduction to colors with the appearance of each new animal and it's emotion. The rhymes are fun and brings a smile to your face when you read it out loud!

Animals Feeling Like Us is a children’s book written for preschoolers but enjoyed by all. This book explores the social emotional topic of feelings. Though not unique in its storyline, this book provides an interactive way to engage a child in learning a variety of emotions using animals as the main characters.The animals reflected in the book are beautiful, bright but not always happy. The illustrations along with the stories use of rhyming gives the child a way to match emotions with feelings. Overall, this book is an enjoyable and fun read.

⭐️ 4/5
I read this with my 4 year old daughter and we found it difficult to read the pages with the lighter colored backgrounds against the white font. The rhyming pattern seemed a bit off a couple times and didn’t always match up like you’d think it should or how the last animal did.

Other than those areas, the book was engaging and interactive with vivid illustrations of animals, while using great adjectives to define each feeling. The animals encouraged us to make a face in the same emotion, and my daughter enjoyed acting along with them.

These books are crucial for our little ones and it’s so important to teach them at a young age that it’s okay to have these feelings, while giving them resources on how to recognize and cope with them.

Thank you NetGalley and the publishers for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!!

Thank you to NetGalley and Books Go Social for the eARC!
This book is a super cute way to teach feelings and emotions to young children. It does a great job explaining each one in a way that’s entertaining and silly. I’m a speech-language pathologist and could absolutely see myself using this book in sessions with students. It would also be a great way to work on recognizing other people’s emotions through facial expressions and body language.

I enjoyed this read and I think it's a good book for kids to be able to become more familiar with their feelings.
The illustrations are well done and simple where I feel kids would be able to identify with each feeling and emotion.

Thank you Netgalley & the publisher for allowing me to review this beautiful ebook.

I absolutely adored the illustrations in this children’s book! It goes through many different emotions/feelings and asks the kids to make that face. Then it goes on with some silly and cute rhymes. Lastly, for each main emotion/feeling it lists corresponding feelings that fall under that umbrella of a feeling. The animals are such a fun way to get kids engaged in feelings!

Through engaging and colorful illustrations, this picture book is a great tool for learning about feelings with children. Perfect for around ages 3 and older, this book is especially great because it names the feeling/emotion and also illustrates the facial expression associated with it. Additionally, the picture book provides examples of situations when someone might experience the feeling that is being described. As a child/adolescent therapist, I love seeing all of the new picture books and children’s literature teaching about thoughts, feelings, and emotions, and this is a great addition to your bookshelf!

I read this with my eight and a half year old daughter. and we both thought it was great. I loved the animals and how the emotions were described for the kids to better understand. It’s so important to talk about feeling with kiddos and this is a great book to help do that.

My daughter said:
“I really liked reading this. I liked learning about all the emotions I feel and I think a lot of kids will like it too. I felt kinda sad when I read about the sad seal and wished it could be happy but I get sad too sometimes.”

Animals Feeling Like Us is a cute picture book that helps to identify feels through silly animals. I liked that each emotion had an image, example, and follow up questions. This would be a great resource with young kids who sometimes struggle to identify secondary emotions. I enjoyed the illustrations and the information was presented in a way that will keep kiddos engaged.

Thanks to BooksGoSocial and NetGalley for an eARC of this book for an honest review.

This was a really cute book teaching little ones about feelings. I don't remember how I learnt what feelings were when I was younger but I know they're not talked about enough and sometimes young children might not know how to express their feelings. Using a variety of animals this book shows how you might express certain emotions facially and explains what it feels like and examples of when you might feel that way, encouraging the children to think of a time they might have felt like that so they can earn to put a word to the feeling. I think it's an excellent way to get kids talking about their feelings. The funny examples of the animals in those scenarios will be great to keep the kids engaged (like a surprised sheep at a surprise birthday party and an excited elephant buying new shoes). The illustrations too, not to busy crowding the pages but with full page colour illustrations on nice colourful patterned backgrounds with a lovely style, will keep the kids interested too. Definitely a great one to read with young kids.

Very cute and child-friendly book. helps young children navigate and understand their emotions through the use of animals and their emotions.

This would be a great addition to any professional working with children, including therapists anf educators. The text cleverly places synonyms and allows kids to catch a grasp before exploring more information. Easy graphics for kids to describe as well.

This is a really fun children's book with great illustrations. It looks at and explains different feelings to kids. Recommended for kids and their parents.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley. My review is voluntary and the opinions expressed are my own.

Animals Feeling Like Us by R. M. Smith was a very cute story with cute illustrations. It teaches children about their feelings as well. I definitely recommend for small children.

What does it look like when you feel happy, frightened, silly, angry, or other thing? What do those feelings mean? Look and see!
The illustrations by the author are imaginative, delightfully colorful, and FUN!
Well suited for reading WITH someone any age from 4 and up, including ESL, and great for gifting to everyone, but especially to a school or your local public library! Pub Date Feb 27, 2025
I requested and received a temporary uncorrected eGalley on PDF from BooksGoSocial via NetGalley.
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Overview:
"Animals Feeling Like Us" is an imaginative and engaging children's book that introduces young readers to the world of emotions through a delightful parade of expressive animal characters. With its playful rhymes and accessible language, the book presents a unique approach to teaching emotional literacy by assigning relatable feelings to fun characters such as a Happy Hippo, an Excited Elephant, and a Grumpy Goat.

Strengths:

Engaging Presentation: The creative use of animal characters to personify emotions immediately captures a child's interest. Each character not only entertains but also serves as a memorable symbol for specific feelings.
Accessible Language: The text is crafted with simple, rhythmic language that is perfectly suited for preschool and early elementary readers, making it easy for them to grasp complex emotional concepts.
Promotion of Emotional Intelligence: By pairing each animal with a brief yet thoughtful description of what the emotion feels like, the book effectively encourages self-awareness and empathy in children.
Educational Versatility: This title works exceptionally well as a resource in both home and classroom settings. Educators and parents alike can use it to initiate discussions about feelings, helping children to recognize and articulate their emotions.
Target Audience:
Ideal for children in the preschool to early elementary age group, "Animals Feeling Like Us" is designed to be both entertaining and instructive. It is a perfect addition to any children's library, particularly for those looking to foster early emotional and social development.

Conclusion:
R.M. Smith's "Animals Feeling Like Us" is a delightful and innovative exploration of emotions that manages to educate while captivating its young audience. Its imaginative presentation and strong focus on developing emotional intelligence make it an invaluable tool for nurturing empathy and self-awareness in children. Highly recommended for parents, educators, and anyone involved in early childhood education.

This was a sweet and educational book! The illustrations were really well done and I enjoyed the explanation for each feeling as it relates to humans after we see the animal experiencing the emotion.