Anna Housley Juster sponsors this book giveaway of The Best Good Thing, presented in partnership with The Children’s Book Review.
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Even the very worst days can have a little good hiding somewhere. In The Best Good Thing, child mental health clinician, mom, and award-winning author Anna Housley Juster introduces young readers to a child who is feeling sad and mad, or “smad,” and is absolutely certain there is nothing good about her day. With a little encouragement from her mom, she begins looking more closely and discovers that good things might be easier to find than she thought.
Children don’t need adults to fix every hard feeling. They need space to feel, tools to grow, and adults willing to listen. Drawing on decades of experience with children and families, Anna Housley Juster creates playful, accessible stories that help young readers better understand their brains, emotions, and themselves.
Warm, relatable, and grounded in child development, this beautifully illustrated story gives children and caregivers an approachable way to explore big feelings and practice looking for positives when things feel hard. From a flower and a kind neighbor to a bit of yummy bread, to discovering that the best good thing of all is love, there are so many good things to find even on a very, very bad and smad day.
Book Giveaway
About the Book
The Best Good Thing: Discovering Joy on a Very Bad, Smad Day
Written by Anna Housley Juster
Illustrated by Andrea Onishi
Ages: 4+ | Pages: 40
Publisher: Free Spirit Publishing (August 2026) | ISBN13: 9798885549653
Publisher’s Synopsis: Some days are all bad . . . or are they?
In The Best Good Thing, nothing is going well. The young narrator, sharing about her day, is feeling sad and mad. Smad! She knows there are no good things about the day. Her mother listens, sympathizes, and suggests intentionally looking for positives. The story becomes a relatable search for good things, which are all around. A flower, a kind neighbor, yummy bread. Ultimately, she discovers the best good thing of all: love.
Written by a child mental health clinician and grounded in child development, this book:
- Meets the need for story-based books with tools that support children’s well-being
- Teaches parents and young readers the therapeutic strategy of cognitive restructuring in an accessible and kid-friendly way
- Includes guidance and support for kids and adults at the back of the book
This engaging and beautifully illustrated story, told by a main character with a strong voice, will make a real difference in the lives of children and their caregivers.
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About the Author
Anna Housley Juster, PhD, LICSW, is an award-winning author, child mental health clinician, education consultant, and mom. She began her career as a Head Start teacher, served as director of content for Sesame Street, and has over twenty-five years of experience supporting children and families. Anna currently treats children managing anxiety, ADHD, and behavior challenges with expertise in cognitive behavioral therapy, play therapy, trauma therapy, and parent guidance.
Her first picture book, How to Train Your Amygdala, is an NYC Big Book Award Distinguished Favorite and has been translated into French, licensed for translation, print, and distribution by the Ministry of Education for Indonesia, and was published as an English-Spanish bilingual edition, How to Train Your Amygdala/Cómo entrenar tu amígdala. Her second picture book The Best Good Thing follows a young girl who discovers joy on a very bad, smad day.
Anna grew up exploring in mud, sand, and snow, surrounded by stories, and is a firm believer in the power of play. She lives with her husband, two daughters, and one very soft dog near Boston, MA.
For more information, visit: www.annahousleyjuster.com
1 Comment
I will read this to my family. . ..