Mop Rides the Waves of Change: A Mop Rides Story

by Jaimal Yogis, Matt Allen (Illustrator)

The second in the Mop Rides series! Surfer kid Mop and his friends are back in a quest to save the ocean with mindfulness, surfing, and a band

Mop and his friends are back, this time with a band, The Coconut Heads. Mop is riding high from the lessons he's learned about riding the waves of to breathe, ride the good waves, and let the bad waves go by. But just when he feels like he's getting the hang of it, he notices a turtle tangled in plastic at the beach. Paddling out to catch a wave, he sees more plastic, and he can't get rid of his anger. It seems like he's back to square one. But after an epic wipeout, he has a deep down, under the anger, is love. He loves the ocean, and he wants to help keep it clean.

But how? Let's just say it involves some party waves and a benefit concert by the Coconut Heads--and it's not just their parents who show up.

Celebrated San Francisco surfer-journalist-dad Jaimal Yogis teaches 4-8 year-olds timeless beach wisdom with the continuing story of Mop, a sensitive and fun-loving kid who just wants to be in the ocean.

With stylish full-color beachy illustrations from cover to cover by So-Cal surfer Matt Allen.

Genres: Picture Books

40 pages, Hardcover

Published July 20, 2021

About the author

Jaimal Yogis is the author of numerous books including Saltwater Buddha, The Fear Project, and All Our Waves Are Water, which have been internationally praised and translated into numerous languages. More recently he has been writing children's books like Mop Rides the Waves of Life, which was named a 2020 Favorite by the Children's Book Review and one of the best sportsbooks for all ages by Book Riot. The next picture book in the series, Mop Rides the Waves of Change, comes out this July from Parallax Press and Penguin Random House, and his middle-grade graphic novel series, City of Dragons, also releases this fall, 2021, from Scholastic. Jaimal's award-winning journalism has appeared in publications like The Washington Post, ESPN Magazine, The Atlantic, and many others. He lives near San Francisco's Ocean Beach with his wife Amy and their three boys.

Reviews

[Yaritza · Rating 4 out of 5]

An adorable book that talks about anger management and cleaning the beach. Mop sure knows how to lose his temper but has learned to control his anger by taking deep breaths and calming himself. Seeing the trash on the beach, he and his friend decide to do a show and ask people to pick up trash to enter the concert. What a great idea! Children will love the illustrations, and this book will teach them to control their anger and look to keep our beaches clean. It's okay to be upset, but we need to learn to control our anger to make a difference. Waves of change flow through every page of this book.

[keirsten chaffee · Rating 5 out of 5]

The illustrations in this book were AMAZING & the story was even better! The pictures are so details, cover the entire pages, & are even sometimes in comic strip form. The main character’s name is Mop & it’s because of his fluffy, wavy hair, so that helps explain *just* how much the illustrations truly form this picture-book.

This book is all about being mindful of our emotions, whether it’s controlling them, or seeing how they effect others. There are plenty of metaphors from cover to cover & it could possibly help children relate the message of the book to real life experiences. “Mop Rides the Waves of Change” also touches on the harmfulness of litter in ocean-life, which I really appreciated in a children’s book!

I would recommend this book for kids anywhere from age 6 to age 10, 11 at most. Even as an adult, I really loved reading this book! I would definitely keep this in my classroom- maybe in a calm down corner, to recenter & ground my students when they’re feeling worked up.

[Sandy · Rating 3 out of 5]

A cute picture book about a young surfer. Has both an environmental message and talks about mindfulness and controlling ones emotions. Might be too many themes for one picture book, but is a good conversation starter for families.

[Carin Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this sweet, simple but deeply empathetic children’s book! Adults could even be inspired to think about how they channel hurt feelings and anger constructively while also getting a simple lesson on understanding of the soul of surfing.

[Garp · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice lesson for kids with great whimsical illustrations. The message of helping the environment, to help you feel better, is great.
I was sent this book from the publisher. Thanks.

[Shaunterria · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great SEL title that presents emotional regulation AND environmentalism in an accessible way (i.e. not too preachy). Recommended purchase for picture book collections.