I am not happy! by Caroline L. Perry. Illus. by Sydney Hanson

The sight of a quokka with his plump cheeks and infectious grin makes people believe him to be the happiest animal in the world. He shows us a range of his facial expressions: sad, worried, disappointed, even wanting desperately to go to the toilet face, but they all look the same - happy. But behind all these happy faces lies an ocean of worries and concerns. The other animals push him aside to get in line, and blame him for the appalling smell, simply because of his smiley face.  And humans are even worse. They confuse him with a rat, and wake him up for selfies, interrupting his sleep. And all because of his smile.

Thankfully an article in the discarded paper attracts his attention, saying that quokkas are not the happiest creatures and the search is on for another. At last he is happy.

Beautifully presented with clear larger sized print the illustrations are delightful showing the quokka in all of his moods, complaining while picking up the rubbish left by humans. But complaining about the rubbish is second to complaining about his face fixed with a permanent smile.

A lovely introduction to talking about how we view others, and how to interpret facial expressions, talking about the quokka will intrigue young readers, as they think about the quokka’s smile.

Talking about Rottnest Island too will be of interest to younger readers, and the page of information at the end of the book will be eagerly read and shared.

Themes: Quokkas, Western Australia, Endangered species, Humour.

Fran Knight