Sarabella’s Thinking Cap

By Judy Schachner
Dial Books for Young Readers, 2017
Picture Book, ages 4 – 8, grades PK – 2
ISBN: 978-0525429180
Additional formats:  Kindle

“Sarabella had no time for small talk. In fact, she never talked much at all…because she was too busy thinking.”

Sarabella is a dreamer. Her days are filled with fascinating thoughts dancing through her imagination—doodles of poodles, painted ponies racing across the sky, a garden growing animals, and even a bear with a good head for numbers. Her family, daydreamers themselves, see no issue with Sarabella’s way of thinking. Yet, there are times Sarabella’s imagination prevents her from concentrating on other important things, such as her schoolwork.  

But one Friday, Mr. Fantozzi, Sarabella’s teacher, sends the class home with the following task:

“A Penny for Your Thoughts: Draw a picture of your favorite daydreams.”

Sarabella is immediately excited by the assignment, but upon returning home, she realizes the challenge in trying to fit all of her ideas onto a piece of paper. With the help of an imagined whale, that suggests “to share it, you’ve just got to wear it,” Sarabella comes up with a solution. With only a brown paper bag and a few craft supplies, Sarabella creates a her thinking cap, “a spectacular collection of doodles and daydreams right on top of her head.”

With whimsical mixed-media collages, Judy Schachner brings us a heartwarming story of a little girl with a big imagination. Sarabella’s Thinking Cap shows the reader the value imagination and sends the message that creativity should be cultivated and nurtured.  -JD