I Am Not Okay - by David DeGrand

About the Book

"All the woodland creatures of Happy Forest (where even trees and flowers smile) go to Fluff Nugget, a fluffy, round critter of indeterminate species, when they need cheering up. He just sings them the 'Goodbye Grumpy Grumps' song and they feel happy again! But when this happens too much--like, WAY too much--it starts to wear on Fluff Nugget, until he feels grumpier than anyone. After he lets loose a cry of 'I AM NOT OK!,' Fluff Nugget and his woodland friends must figure out a better way to boost the mood. Will the Happy Forest ever be the same again?"

Book Synopsis

How the Grinch Stole Christmas meets Ren & Stimpy in this graphic novel about confronting your emotions, perfect for kids who love the fun weirdness of the Catwad and Bird & Squirrel series.

All the woodland creatures of Happy Forest (where even trees and flowers smile) go to Fluff Nugget, a fluffy, round critter of indeterminate species, when they need cheering up--he just sings them the "Goodbye Grumpy Grumps" song and they feel happy again! But when this happens too much...like, WAY too much...it starts to wear on Fluff Nugget, until he feels grumpier than anyone. After he lets loose a cry of "I AM NOT OK!" Fluff Nugget and his woodland friends must figure out a better way to boost the mood. Will the Happy Forest ever be the same again?

Review Quotes

"DeGrand's bright and bold over-the-top cartoon
artwork escalates the frenetic energy of the story, in which just about every object has a smiley face, and that will keep kids turning the pages. The helpful message that it's OK to ask for space is welcome, but it's the raucous art and slapstick comedy that steals the show."
--Booklist

About the Author

David DeGrand is a cartoonist who has illustrated numerous kids books, including The Zombie Chasers series, The World of Weird Animals series, and a book of gross tongue twisters, Twisted Tongues. He has also written and illustrated for numerous comic book titles such as SpongeBob Comics, The Simpsons, Garfield, Adventure Time, Rocko's Modern Life, Uncle Grandpa, and Pig Goat Banana Cricket. He recently designed the animated series Death Hacks for Augenblick Studios and is currently working on a graphic novel for First Second.