I'm Afraid, Said the Leaf - by Danielle Daniel (Hardcover)

About the Book

"Picture book about how each plant and animal has a vital role in the ecosystem."--

Book Synopsis

A touching, playful exploration of empathy and interdependency from an acclaimed author and illustrator.

I'm afraid, Said the leaf. / You're not alone, Said the tree. But who will comfort a nervous bird, a lonely crab, a lost wolf? How can a horse find warmth, a snail some cheer, a child some rest? Through a series of amusing and soothing exchanges, this deceptively simple and profound picture book depicts different pairings to celebrate interconnectedness and underlines the importance of caring for every living organism to ensure a strong and healthy natural world. I'm Afraid, Said the Leaf invites young readers to understand that we all need each other for support and survival -- and that we're all stronger together.

Review Quotes

Nominated for the 2024 Governor General's Literary Award for Young People -- Illustrated Text!
Shortlisted for the Canadian Children's Book Centre's Marilyn Baillie Picture Book Award, 2025
One of CCBC's Best Books for Kids and Teens

PRAISE FOR I'm Afraid, Said the Leaf

"Every worry is addressed and every need is met in this eloquent portrait of the interconnectedness of the living world." --STARRED REVIEW, Publishers Weekly

"[T]he art renders the tale truly universal." --Kirkus Reviews

"The perfect book for any young reader who'd rather read outside." --Booklist

"Gentle, rhythmic text and richly expressive illustrations combine to create a deeply layered picture book where words and images flow together in perfect harmony. A gem of a book that invites wonder, reflection and comfort." --Canadian Children's Book Centre

"[A] good picture book about kindness and how all species are interconnected and depend on each other "to exist and thrive in harmony."" --Metroland

"I'm Afraid, Said the Leaf will offer new connections to the natural and human worlds each time you read it with a fortunate child." --Imaginary Elevators

"A call-to-action is never spelled out within the bounds of this story, but the spotlight that I'm Afraid, Said the Leaf casts on nature's inherent kindness makes reciprocity seem oh-so-irresistible." --Young Adulting

"A great book to get children thinking about nature and perhaps experience it in a way they hadn't before!" --The Southern Bookseller

About the Author

DANIELLE DANIEL is an acclaimed author and illustrator whose journey into art making and book publishing has gone hand in hand with all she has learned -- and continues to learn -- about her Indigenous ancestry and her relationship with the land. Her picture books include Sometimes I Feel Like a Fox (winner of the Marilyn Baillie Picture Book Award and selected as one of the New York Public Library's 100 Titles for Reading and Sharing), Sometimes I Feel Like a River, Once in a Blue Moon and You Hold Me Up, written by Monique Gray Smith. She has also written novels for children and adults and lives on Manitoulin Island among a large family of cedars, a husk of hares and a fifty-year-old Blanding's turtle, who visits quite regularly.

MATT JAMES has won many fancy awards for his picture books such as the Boston Globe-Horn Book Award, the Marilyn Baillie Picture Book Award, the New Mexico Book Award and the Governor General's Literary Award for Children's Literature. The books he has written include Tadpoles, Nice Try, Charlie! and his author-illustrator debut The Funeral, which was named a New York Times/New York Public Library Best Illustrated Children's Book. He has also illustrated When the Moon Comes by Paul Harbridge and The Stone Thrower by Jael Ealey Richardson. As a child Matt spent many hours admiring his reflection in the toaster -- now he lives in Toronto and is much taller.