Be My Brave Sunflower

What happens when an anxious sunflower seed named Vernon faces his fears--and decides to grow and bloom anyway?

The children are planting sunflowers at school, and Carla is given a seed named Vernon. All the other children’s seeds are excited to get out of the packet and start growing, but not Vernon. He knows about slugs and birds and thunderstorms. He knows that the world is scary--and though Carla waters him lovingly, to her dismay, Vernon is the only seed that doesn’t grow into a seedling. Can Vernon drum up the courage to push himself out of the ground and face the world for Carla? This warm and reassuring story for young children who feel anxiety about a new chapter in their life, such as starting school, may help seed the realization that the satisfaction of new experiences is worth overcoming one’s fears.

Kathryn Simmonds is the author of the adult poetry collection Sunday at the Skin Launderette, a recipient of the Forward Prize for Poetry for Best First Collection, as well as the novel Love and Fallout. Be My Brave Sunflower is her debut picture book. She lives in England.

Rosalind Beardshaw is the illustrator of Not That Pet! by Smriti Prasadam-Halls and several other books for children, including the Walk and See series and I See the Moon: Rhymes for Bedtime. She lives in England.