That Makes Me Mad!

by Steven Kroll

Little Nina explains situations, activities, and circumstances that make her angry

Genres: Childrens, Emotion, Picture Books

32 pages, Library Binding

First published January 1, 1976

About the author

Stephen Kroll spoke at schools and conferences all over the world. He was married to the journalist, Kathleen Beckett, and they lived in New York City and an old carriage house in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. When he was not writing or traveling, he played a lot of tennis and walked around looking at everything.

Reviews

[Laura Hughes · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of my favorite books from childhood. I love, love, love the illustrations and Nina not being afraid to express her anger.

[Kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not a good read aloud but would be a great way to talk to a child about controlling anger.

[A Z · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love these cute and funny books that still raise the hair on my arms:)

[Molly · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my all time childhood favorite books of all time!

[Esther Moss]

Nina in...That Makes Me Mad!
Reading level: J (guided reading), 170 (lexile)
Book interest level: pre-k through 1st - it could seem a little baby-ish for some first graders, but many immature first graders I know from my job (and even 2nd and 3rd graders) could appreciate the message of this book - and learn something from it!

Book summary: This graphic novel tells the story of Nina, a little girl who gets MAD a lot! Each section is a vignette that shows a different situation that makes Nina mad and describes how she acts when she feels that way. The book ends with Nina explaining that it helps to tell someone that she is mad and process that feeling with an adult.

Mentor trait: conventions. Because this book has a simple, somewhat juvenile subject matter and would appeal to younger students, I think that its strongest mentor trait is one that emerging writers can appreciate: conventions. The short, clear language is perfect for showcasing punctuation, quotation, and capital letters.

Integration: I would read this to my kindergarteners to talk about not only how they feel but how they can write and draw their feelings to help process them and think critically.

[Bonnie Chang · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a wonderful book on teaching children how to recognize and express their emotions. This book talks about things that make you made and why it makes you mad. Children will find this book extremely relatable and understand that by expressing themselves they are creating an open communication with adults.

[Kelli · Rating 3 out of 5]

Funny, wonderfully-illustrated view of the temper tantrums kids have. Depending on your mood, this is an insightful look into normal child development, or a keen description of drama queen behavior at its best.

[Shannon · Rating 2 out of 5]

Meh. Tried to read this with my son, but we ended up stopping before we got to the end. We read aloud, and it was quite difficult for him to follow the reasons Nina gave for being mad and the jumpy dialogue all on the same page.

[Suzanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book really ecompasses a lot of what children feel.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a hard book to read aloud, because there is lots of dialogue between the girl and her family. But it is a cute book that can provoke a good discussion.

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book for discussing things that make us mad & how to deal with that emotion that bottles up inside us. Both my 5 yo & 2.5 yo liked reading this book.

[Isela · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nina, the character in this book, is someone students can relate to . The pictures are colorful with short phrases . Therefore it is is an easy to read book.

[Conquering]

This was a favorite of mine as a child and now I love reading it with my own children. It's a great book to help children begin to learn how to deal with anger.

[Naomi · Rating 2 out of 5]

Another tantrum book with a cheezy ending. Illustrations didn't rock me either. This book was just meh to me.