Dressed in a jersey, Alex (white) is playing a game of keep-the-basketball-away-from-his-teammates in the wet schoolyard one day. Nearby, a white boy arranges several of his drawings on a bench for classmates to admire. When Alex carelessly tosses the ball over several kids’ heads, it lands on the drawings, knocking them off the bench and into a puddle, where they are ruined. Classmates rush to the artist to offer sympathy and shoot angry glares at Alex, who had already been annoying them with his game. Inside, a clearly remorseful and embarrassed Alex is shunned by his classmates, while the artist pulls himself together after a brief cry. After school, the artist approaches Alex; they talk and shake hands, and the other classmates follow the artist’s lead in forgiving him. An additional peace offering—a drawing Alex makes of himself and the artist playing basketball together—makes things even better the next morning. Appealing ink-and-watercolor illustrations of children with round, oversized heads clearly depict both the plot and, as importantly, the emotions in this wordless book. (Ages 4-8)

A simple, yet powerful, picture book--from New York Times bestselling creators, Kerascoët—about compassion and forgiveness.

Alex’s enthusiasm and energy can sometimes be a challenge for his classmates. He loves to play ball on the playground with his friends, but when his rambunctious behavior inadvertently upsets one of the other students, he finds himself at odds with the whole class.

A perfect companion to the picture book I Walk with Vanessa, which Parents magazine named the Best Book of the Year about kindness, this story explores the difficult feelings that come with apologies and forgiveness. In a story that sees the perspective of both sides, Alex learns quickly that the right thing to do is say he’s sorry, leaving it up to his friend to find the compassion and empathy to accept it.

This wordless picture book is a good reminder that it’s important to take responsibility for a mistake but that it’s equally important to be ready to forgive.