When I’m Feeling Happy

By Trace Moroney

The Five Mile Press

Australia 2005

ISBN 9781741245035

ages 0-4

“When I’m Feeling Happy” by Trace Moroney, describes the feeling of happiness, and the experiences associated with it, as it pertains to one cute, non-gender specific, rabbit character.  It is written in first person with the rabbit’s experience front and centre of the story. The rabbit describes what happens in his body when he feels happy, for example, “I feel bouncy” and “My face feels smiley”. This could be a significant talking point for the reader/listener as they consider what various emotions feel like in their own body. The occasions which the rabbit associates with feelings of happiness mostly stem from experiences of connection with family and friends, such as baking cookies with Grandma or camping and talking with Dad. Towards the end of the story the rabbit identifies how the experience of happiness is beneficial to their life, such as helping them have more patience and being able to feel kind and caring towards others.   It finishes with the rabbit’s gaze directed toward the reader, stating confidently that they feel good about themselves, and in doing so the feeling of happiness is directly related to this positive self-concept.  The prose is simple and direct, with occasional repetition and exaggerated words and sounds, giving ample clues as to how the text could be spoken aloud in order to convey the energy and positivity of the rabbit character.

The illustrations are bright and colourful with a slightly soft texture to their appearance.  The paper itself is embossed which makes it a multisensory reading experience, with the potential to run fingers over the outlines of the illustrations. The front cover features a delightfully furry texture on the face of the rabbit. There are a few beautiful full-colour pages within the book.  In line with the text, the rabbit is dressed in a non-gender specific green jumper and jeans

The final page of the book is dedicated to background notes for parents. On this page psychologists Bill Hallan and Dr Crag Olsson have outlined the link between self-esteem, self-knowledge and trust in one’s own emotional experience. They give hints for how parents can foster happiness and self-esteem.  There are ten “feelings books” created by Trace Moroney. The other books in the series are “Jealous”, “Disappointed”, “Love”, “Scared”, “Angry”, “Sad”, “Kind” and “Lonely”.