I need to preface this post with a disclaimer that the author of this upcoming picture book is a dear friend of mine and I was able to be a beta reader for this manuscript. However, I also hold my promotion of picture books to a high standard as a crucial element of supporting teachers and students with #ClassroomBookADay and literacy instruction, so if I didn’t feel that I could wholeheartedly recommend this book as meeting the criteria I have for book recs, I would have politely passed on doing this cover reveal and still remained friends. LOL! But I am SO EXCITED to share this new picture book with you today!! It has been a long time I have known about it and had to keep the secret, so I’m glad it’s finally time to share!
A lettuce who thinks he’s a melting iceberg learns how to cool himself down emotionally with the help of his friends in this whimsical picture-book debut.
Harold is an iceberg . . . lettuce. (But he doesn’t realize the “lettuce” part because some of his sticker has been ripped off.) So one day when he sees a documentary about how the icebergs are melting, Harold starts to worry, thinking that he’s melting too.
As his anxiety grows and grows, and he tries to find a way to stop melting, his fellow food friends try to help him cool down in a different way.
Accompanied by Rebecca Syracuse’s bold, whimsical artwork, Lisa Wyzlic’s debut picture book is all about the importance of friendship and self-care, perfect for any young reader worried about their planet’s future.
On sale 3/21/23.
I absolutely adore this book that touches on anxiety, climate change, and supportive friends. It will be a fabulous addition to any teacher or librarian wanting to support student mental health, incorporate social emotional learning, and build classroom community. And how cute is the illustration of Harold?!
Preorder your copy through my bookshop link
to support my work + your favorite independent bookstore!
Lisa Wyzlic enjoys imagining creatures and objects with strong feelings and telling their stories. Like her characters, Lisa often has her own strong feelings, though normally not about melting. She lives with her husband, two kids, and two rescue cats in Manitoba, Canada. Harold the Iceberg Melts Down is her debut picture book.
Rebecca Syracuse is an illustrator and children’s book designer based in Brooklyn, New York. When she isn’t drawing faces on vegetables, you might find her scoping the shelves of her local bookstore, or trying to pet a stray cat. Harold the Iceberg Melts Down is her picture-book illustration debut. rebeccasyracuse.com
