The Nervous Knight: A Story About Overcoming Worries and Anxiety

By Author / Illustrator

Lloyd Jones, Ian Macdonald

Genre

Mental Health & Wellbeing

Age range(s)

Publisher

Jessica Kingsley Publishers

ISBN

9781787754164

Format

Hardback

Published

21-01-2021

Synopsis

Once upon a time, in a peaceful kingdom far away, there lived a knight (in training). This knight was never ever seen without their armour. In fact, nobody even knew what they looked like under their helmet. Why would they remove their armour? You never know what might happen. What if there was suddenly a war, or an exploding volcano, or they fell and scraped their knee?!

The Nervous Knight shows what childhood anxiety can look like, while helping to normalise it and show children (ages 5+) that they can do the things they care about despite their worries. It also contains a guide for parents and professionals, giving expert advice on how to use the book to aid discussions on this topic.

Reviews

Jemma

The Nervous Night is a story about fear and overcoming worries, written by Anthony Lloyd Jones. A gender-neutral knight lives in a peaceful kingdom but is never seen without their armour on, never ever. For who knows what could happen if they unveil their true self? With support from friends, the knight grows in confidence, tries new things and even removes parts of their armour. They open themselves up to joy, friendships and vulnerability.

This book provides an 'in' to discuss and normalise childhood anxiety with children. It is accessible and relatable and the illustrations capture what these feelings might look like if a child were to draw them. At the end of the book is a guide for parents and carers that offers advice by the mental health consultant, Ian Macdonald. With a lot of mental health problems beginning in childhood, a book like this is invaluable and should be available for all children to explore.

Picture book / Reviewed by Jemma Cruise, teacher