Josie loves weekends right up until Sunday, when Monday starts to cast a shadow. Debra Kempf Shumaker gives that feeling a name and a few ways to shrink it.
Readical Key Points
- Picture book for ages 3 to 7 (preschool to grade 2), per Ingram; hardcover, 40 pages, Knopf Books for Young Readers, 2026
- Illustrated by Lavanya Naidu
- Addresses anxiety about school and the coming week; includes a caregiver note and practical tips
- Reviewed in Kirkus Reviews and School Library Journal
The weekend is movie night and the fluffiest pancakes. Then a tickle in the throat arrives, and a wisp of shadow behind her back, and Josie knows Monday is coming. Her parents may have a touch of it too. Shumaker treats the worry with humor rather than alarm, and Lavanya Naidu illustrates. With her family's help, Josie finds ways to soothe the feeling and look toward the week ahead.
Parents, caregivers and teachers can read it aloud on a Sunday evening or in the first weeks of school, then use the caregiver note and tips. School Library Journal suggests it for counselors working with school anxiety. The caregiver note and tips offer small strategies, not a treatment plan. Monday still arrives on schedule; by then Josie has a few ways to meet it.
About the Author and Illustrator
Debra Kempf Shumaker is the author of the picture books Freaky, Funky Fish and Peculiar Primates. Lavanya Naidu, an illustrator and animator from Kolkata and a graduate of the National Institute of Design, has illustrated children's books including Home Is in Between.
Condition: Brand New and Readical Ready.
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