Howl

Reviews / Votes

'I love the impish characterisation of a little girl exploring her own anger and the boundaries of her world ... it chimes so resoundingly ... Howl is a timely reminder that most of us are overdue a good wail in the moonlight.' -- Sophie Morris * i * 'This whimsical fable about feelings uses humour and wild imagination to push the boundaries of bad temper towards a catharsis ... Evie Barrow's hand-drawn pencil illustrations pulse with detail and angry-faced Maggie, with her canine fangs, is a petulant delight.' -- Sara Keating * The Irish Times * 'Beautifully illustrated and moving ... With fantastic drawings ... this book is perfect for sparking emotional display artwork ideas.' * The School Reading List * 'In Howl Patrick's warm storytelling style is beautifully enriched by Barrow's bright, textured pencil drawings. Scribble has consistently put out fantastic children's books since its launch in late 2016 and Howl is no exception. This is exactly the kind of gorgeous, imaginative, giftable picture book that booksellers will find themselves recommending far and wide come the lead-up to Christmas.' -- Bronte Coates * Books+Publishing * 'Howl is a book for our times, especially for mothers and children in lockdown. The narrative encourages us to express our emotions, it's cathartic to howl it all out!' -- Leesa Lambert * The Little Bookroom * 'Illustrations are bright and sketchy, with a loose, windblown feeling and coloured-pencil lines going everywhere in all directions; this matches Maggie's frustration and then her freedom ... Pair with Kyo Maclear and Isabelle Arsenault's brilliant Virginia Wolf (2012).' * Kirkus Reviews * 'A pedagogical book that gets to the very core of emotional intelligence.' -- Jesica Sweedler DeHart, Neill Public Library 'This is a charming story that revels in the delights of expressing yourself ... Howl is a joyous celebration of what it means to be alive, and will be enjoyed by youngsters learning how to express their big feelings.' -- Angela Crocombe * Readings * '[A] great story about helping children get through some of their intense emotions.' -- Kristin Guay * Youth Services Book Review * 'Howl is a masterfully told and exquisitely drawn story of a young girl's way of expressing and resolving big feelings.' * Mama Mag * 'If this isn't THE book for all the 2020 Big Feelings, then I don't know what is.' -- Shannon Wong-Nizic * Oh Creative Day * 'It is fantastic, and really timely given all of the big emotions everyone is dealing with these days.' * Picture Book Playdate * '[E]xquisite pencil and pastel illustrations create a mood of eerie mystique, highlighting the unique bond between mother and child, and underscoring the magical feeling of letting out big feelings and finding inner calmness once again.' -- Maya Espiritu * MaiStoryBook * '[A] celebration of recognising and resolving the strong emotions that we feel. Not only for kids, but also adults.' * Houston Library Finds * '[H]ave you ever had big feelings, so big all you could do was howl? that's what happened to Maggie and her mum in howl ... [T]his is a masterfully told story about the ways children can resolve feelings of anger and frustration.' * Girl Gang and Co * 'Howl is the perfect book for learning to embrace your inner wild.' * Kid Lit Crafts * 'Big feelings? Excellent. Rather than shying away and merely counting to 5 to calm our big feelings, author Kat Patrick invites our little readers to acknowledge their big feelings and almost celebrate them - knowing that at the end of the day, when the moon ducks behind the trees, you are still the very you, and there's no shame in that.' * Bedtime Stories Forevermore * '[A] joint mother/daughter adventure in a similar vein to Where the Wild Things Are - where they just give in to their powerful emotions and let it rip. Paired with the stunning illustrations, this experience is very special.' -- Ryan Billingsley * Dad Suggests * 'It's Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day meets Where the Wild Things Are. Maggie already had so many misfortunes (her spaghetti was too long, the sky was too blue) when her two front teeth fall out. Fangs grow in their place, and she begins to have 'wolfish thoughts.' The pencil and pastel drawings show how she resolves her feelings in an unexpected way.' * Parents Magazine * 'Do you ever feel irritated by everything? Like your own body is confining? Are you ready to just burst out and run through the night? Let loose your inner wolf and howl at the moon? Maggie and her mum are just having a rough day, and are ready for some werewolfism in the great out doors of suburbia, and honestly It's a vibe I am totally feeling right now. This isn't a book about being trapped by a pandemic, but it might as well be.' * Read with River * 'In a fantastical narrative that mirrors the plot of Where the Wild Things Are, a child learns to resolve overwhelming feelings ... Scribbly strokes of coloured pencil, chalk pastel, and wax crayon appropriately illustrate Maggie's frustrations. The refrain 'If I am a [person], I am also a wolf' paints personhood as part and parcel of having wolfish feelings, and Wolf Mom's advice ('Take a deep breath. Count to seven, which is ten in human breaths, and imagine your biggest feelings flying into the sky') will prove useful for anyone having one of those days.' * Publishers Weekly * 'The Evie Barrow's crayon drawings give the illustrations movement, especially to the actions of Maggie and her mother dancing and howling at the moon in their garden.' * Child Magazine * 'Perfect for lockdown days.' * Daily Mail * 'I love the impish characterisation of a little girl exploring her own anger and the boundaries of her world ... it chimes so resoundingly.' * i Newspaper * 'Patrick's wonderfully innovative story is complemented by Barrow's pencil illustrations that are ... vivid with a childlike quality to them. Maggie's story is a declaration of authenticity, a quest for liberation and an exploration of escapism. Patrick's writing encourages her readers to embrace what makes them individual and reminds them that there is no limit to our imagination or originality.' -- Fiona Buckley * Irish Examiner * 'This delightful book, with its rich illustrations is destined to become a firm family favourite.' * Creative Steps * 'This whimsical fable about feelings uses humour and wild imagination to push the boundaries of bad temper towards a catharsis.' * The Irish Times * 'Rendered in lyrical, evocative prose and vibrantly scratchy pencil illustrations.' -- James Lovegrove * Financial Times * 'Evie Barrow's textured illustrations and saturated colours bring the atmosphere and background to life adding detail and depth to the author's narrative. Maggie and her Mum have real character and their emotions, moving from Maggie's pent up frustrations to the joyous freedom of a moonlit garden, are perfectly realised in words and images.' * Books for Keeps * 'A clever book which shows children how their emotions can build up and it can feel good to let them all out.' * Bright Horizons * 'Perceptive and non-judgemental ... the story itself has a timeless feel and is accompanied by beautiful textured pencil drawings ... empowering.' -- Anne Thompson * The School Librarian *