Small Acts by Kate Gordon and Kate Foster

What if

we are all

searching for meaning

in all the wrong places.

What if we are

looking

in

mirrors,

websites

and catalogues

when meaning is not a thing that can be seen,

or clicked on 

or bought.

What if it is only something that can be given,

pushed out

into the world.

What if our own,

individual

meaning

does not exist,

but can only be shared,

like air,

like breath.

What if the only true meaning

is kindness?

In Small Acts we meet two kids - Josh and Ollie (Olivia). Both have issues and both find school and life itself can be difficult to cope with. Luckily in their Grade Five class they have the most wonderful teacher Mr Parham. As an aside if I could meet Mr Parham I would like to give him a huge hug and thank him for his kindness towards Josh and Ollie. He does not make a fuss about their autism - he just sets things in place which help both of them cope with their school day and he is always ready to listen. Oh, and unlike Josh, I think if I met him, I might make a comment about liking his red things - marker, socks, tie etc. 

Josh and Ollie do have things in common such as their autism and the fact that both of them have lost their very best friend - a truly devastating life change. But I love the way this book shows or tries to show that autism affects kids in very different ways and also the ways these two kids set up their own coping strategies are very different. And another interesting addition to this story is the character of Auntie Olive who is an autistic adult. Ollie's mum is her sister and when Aunty Olive was young she was lost in the bush for several days. This explains why Ollie's mum is so very protective her daughter Ollie. 

Both kids, independently of each other, decide the best way to get on in the world is to be kind. Josh is desperate to join one of the many clubs at school but none of them seem like a good fit. He decides to start a club of his own based around kindness. Meanwhile Ollie loves art. She sees a boy in the park who looks lost and alone. Her heart reaches out to him but she is so shy there is no way she could easily talk to this stranger so instead she makes a small sculpture and leaves it on the park bench for him to find. 

Here are some text quotes from Small Acts which is a narrative with a few sections in the form of a verse novel:

"Ollie was autistic like him and had been at Emu River as long as Josh, but he'd never really paid her much attention."

"It's okay. I was running with my eyes closed.' The boy smiled. It was like sunshine."

"Why was it so hard to make Ollie smile? Maybe he was only making Ollie smile on the inside. But how would he every know? He needed an outside smile."

"Ollie was more like Josh than he realised. Actually, Ollie was better at doing kind things than he was! Wow. Kindness was ... was contagious. That was a great word. Maybe doing kind acts wasn't only about making people smile; it was also to encourage other people to do kind things as well."

"I don't want to be one of your small acts ... I want to do Small Acts of Kindness, myself."

"... on that day Millie had broken her heart (and) Ollie had decided that she didn't deserve kindness. She didn't deserve friends. She didn't deserve people to like her. And so she would do everything she oculd to make sure nobody showed her kindness again."

If you are reading this book and you have not heard about the television series Bluey you will need to hunt out the episode called Sticky Gecko (referred to on page 133). Ollie also talks about her favourite book about a witch - The Worst Witch by Jill Murphy.

Small Acts will at times, break your heart, but under the skillful care of Kate Gordon and Kate Foster it will be made whole again by the end of the book not in a fairy tale way but in a very emotionally satisfying way. I highly recommend Small Acts for readers aged 10+. If this book was published in the UK I am certain it would be included on the Empathy Lab book list. If you read this book with a class your students could write their own lists of kind acts - and it would be even more powerful if they each did a small act of kindness anonymously. It seems obvious but an important part of reading a book about children autism (or any other 'disability') is that the story allows a child reader to enter the world of another child with a different set of life experiences or it shows a child who feels a like Josh or Ollie that they are not alone. If child is struggling with a 'label' like autism I'm not saying this book will make the experience any easier but perhaps it will help to both see the different ways Josh and Ollie experience peer relationships, the way they work hard to understand themselves, each other and others and also the way they bring others together through kindness.

The two Kates have collaborated to create an inspiring and optimistic, yet simple story, explaining how to learn what acts of kindness are; their value to those who receive, and equally, if not more, to those who offer them. Kids' Book Review

The book tackles significant real-world issues such as mental health, disability, and the impact of acts of kindness. By addressing these topics with sensitivity, the book offers readers a thought-provoking exploration of how individual actions can influence and improve the lives of others. It’s a compelling read that encourages empathy and understanding. Better Reading

Small Acts is a CBCA 2025 Younger Readers Notable title. I would not be surprised to see it make the shortlist of six.

Companion books:

The Unlikely Heroes Club (notice this is also by Kate Foster)

The Kindness Project

If you want to read another book about an inspirational teacher try to find this one:

Zoe, Max and the Bicycle Bus

Weird Little Robots by Carolyn Crimi illustrated by Corinna Luyken

 

Penny Rose loves creating things from found and recycled materials. Her latest project is the creation of five robots. 

"She had made them with odd items that pleased her, like a meat thermometer, a cell phone, a calculator, a pair of old dentures. One robot had a marble eye that Penny Rose had found in the town graveyard."

The robots have cute names: iPam, Fraction, Clunk, Sharpie and Data. On the night of her birthday something happens to her robots - something magical:

"And maybe it was the force of her determination, or a few stray whiskers from her cat, Arvid, or that northerly wind blowing in through the window that changed every single item in that shed on that cool September afternoon. Or maybe it was simply a desperate wish from a lonely girl."

Her family have just moved to this new town and Penny Rose would like a friend. Her robots are her friends but there is a girl right across the road called Lark. Perhaps there is a way Lark might become her friend. Sure, this can happen but there will be complications along the way along with some special discoveries about those quirky robots who now seem to have their own agenda. 

This is a sweet little story about the importance of friendship and the wonderful things that can happen if you believe in magic and there is just the right amount of tension to keep you turning the pages. I think readers aged 8+ will enjoy this book. I do like the subtitle: Two science geeks, five robots. One incredible adventure.

Penguin Random House blurb: Eleven-year-old Penny Rose has just moved to a new town, and so far the robots she builds herself are her only company. But with just a bit of magic, everything changes: she becomes best friends with Lark, has the chance to join a secret science club, and discovers that her robots are alive. Penny Rose hardly remembers how lonely she used to feel. But then a fateful misstep forces her to choose between the best friend she’s always hoped for and the club she’s always dreamed of, and in the end it may be her beloved little robots that pay the price.

Here is a set of teaching notes and questions from the US publisher Candlewick. The US copy has a different cover:

There are so many things to love about this charming little tale of friendship and creativity, science and magic. The girls are interesting and interested in the world around them. But it's the robots who steal the show. Reading Style

Carolyn Crimi’s prose is crisp and inviting. Believable dialogue helps move the story forward as does the overall paragraph/chapter structure. Corinna Luyeken’s sweet illustration have an earnestness to them that adds emotion and light throughout. Cracking the Cover

You can see books by Caroline Crimi on her web site. Here are some other books illustrated by Corinna Luyken:

Strictly no elephants by Lisa Mantchev illustrated by Taeeun Yoo

I remember years ago we had a little book in our library called But No Elephants.   Reading Strictly no Elephants tonight I thought about this older book.  I also remembered a little junior chapter book called The pocket Elephant by Catherine Sefton.

All three books deal with the unlikely, but somehow delightful idea, of having an elephant as a pet and even better having an elephant as a friend.

A young boy has a pet elephant.  It is the day for a meeting of the Pet Club at Number 17. Sadly when the boy and his elephant arrive there is a sign on the door "Strictly No Elephants."  As they travel home they meet a girl with a pet skunk.  The pet club members also don't want to play with skunks even though this little skunk does not stink.

The solution - start your own pet club with a sign that says All Are Welcome.  And yes they all come. Such a variety of animals and their friends meeting in a wonderful tree house.

I love this line from the book which comes as the boy and elephant make their journey to the club meeting :

"He doesn't like the cracks in the sidewalk much.  I always go back and help him over. That's what friends do : lift each other over the cracks."

That's what friends do is a repeated refrain in this story which is about so much more than having an elephant as a pet.

There is even a song to go with this joyous book.  Here is a reading of the whole book.

Sweet and affirming. Kirkus

In “Strictly No Elephants,” a sunny, smart, tongue-in-cheek tale written by Lisa Mantchev, friendships are born out of mutual respect for the idiosyncratic choices of others.  New York Times

I absolutely adored seeing all the non-traditional pets. But my favorite part is the HEART of this book about fitting in. It’s a theme that any aged reader can relate too.   Nerdy Book Club