WHAT ARE YOU, SOME KIND OF CHICKEN?

Lily is a quintessentially mild-mannered animal--she stays within the lines when she's coloring, doesn't like to raise her wing in school even when she knows the answers, and is definitely not ready to take off her training wheels on her bike even when she's being left in the dust by her friends. And she certainly can't imagine getting up onstage in front of everyone for the Grand-Slam Poetry Jam when everyone else around her can't wait. What's a poor chicken to do? 

This warm and gentle picture book by Lori Mortensen, with charming illustrations by Nina Victor Crittenden, explores childhood social anxieties in a authentic but lighthearted way, reassuring introverts of all ages that sometimes the risk of putting yourself out there comes with great rewards. 

Chicken Lily is a perfect read for preschoolers through second graders, especially those timid ones in need of a helpful--not didactic--boost of confidence for dealing with the everyday jitters.