Sweep

K-Gr 2–In this creative and enchanting picture book, Greig (The Night Box) does an exemplary job of helping children understand bad moods and their ability to control them. On the first page, readers meet Ed, a young boy in a foul mood who is armed with a broom and is facing down a pile of leaves. He begins to sweep and as his grumpiness increases, his sweeping takes on a maniacal life of its own. Ed sweeps up pedestrians, dogs, buses, and bicycles as his pile of leaves grows exponentially. The poor boy can’t stop himself even though, “Ed knew perfectly well when he had gone far enough.” The bad mood is so all-consuming and infectious that one spread shows the entire town in darkness littered with huge piles of leaves. Fortunately, a new wind begins to blow and slowly,then suddenly, everything looks different and brighter. This delightful tale ends with Ed and his friends flying kites in the wind and talking about how he might think twice before he lets himself be swept away again.