What Feelings Do When No One's Looking by Tina Oziewicz, Translated by Jennifer Croft

Translated from the Polish by Jennifer Croft

An unruly cast of emotions come alive in this romping dream world, a place Maurice Sendak's Wild Things could call home.

Curiosity, a lithe and floppy-eared creature, perches above the open world and gazes out with a zippy blend of hope, wonder, and longing. From the tip of a chimney, we bound into the quiet and mischievous world of feelings, meeting a troupe of tufted creatures as we go.

Sympathy helps snails cross a sidewalk to safety, fear pirouettes in an attempt to camouflage with wallflowers, and pleasure reclines across a doily-donned reading chair, sipping a cup of tea. Elsewhere, our insecurities – pesky, cavorting beings – build intricate cages and stride about with clattering sets of keys.

Tina Oziewicz’s words hum with truth, and Aleksandra Zając’s illustrations bloom and burst with charming details like a sail constructed out of a pair of billowing long johns or a red slipper falling from a contented paw.

Taking in the perfect harmony of this book is like taking a long gulp from a trusty thermos and filling up with warmth. What Feelings Do When No One’s Looking surprises and soothes, inspires us to feel.

Hardcover book, 2022

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