The Dizzy Waggles are playing a game. They are picking up balls and throwing them through a hanging loop made of sticks. It’s lots of fun for everyone except for one Dizzy Waggle named Lulu.
No matter how hard Lulu tries, she can’t get the ball through the hoop. Her friends encourage her to keep trying, but someone else is also watching.
A mean, green forest troll jumps out from a bush and begins teasing Lulu. With her feelings hurt, she asks him why he says such nasty things. This troll however, is proud of his nastiness, and brushes off Lulu’s quiet questions.
Later that night, Lulu’s words have sunken in to this troll’s mind and memories where he was once teased too. He also remembers how he used to be before finding it easier to be angry and mean.
Can Dizzy Waggle Lulu’s words – even when she was being bullied herself – make this mean, green, forest troll change?
The 3rd in this rhyming picture book series about ‘Teaching Emotional Intelligence and Resilience Through Storytelling‘, explores bullying, kindness, empathy and self-love.
These cute creatures, even including the troll, help young listeners understand that sometimes bullies are mean because they may be sad, or hurting from their own past events.
Lulu’s own inner strength in her kindness, sees through Forest Troll’s hard, outer armour of mean and reaches his heart. Self-belief is Lulu’s armour and it wins in the end. Her ability to forgive her bully is also a topic opened by this story, which can be observed and discussed with young listeners.
This picture book series starring brightly coloured creatures called Dizzy Waggles, are eye-catching and cute along with other forest animals.
Each book has further questions and activities at the rear of the book, on each emotion shared within it’s full colour spreads.
Author – Cloe Willetts
Illustrator – Fabienne Joni Sopacua
Picture Book
(2024, EQ Storytelling, NZ Author, NZ / Dutch Illustrator, Wellness focused storytelling, Fantasy, Creatures, Bullying, Bullies, Kindness, Empathy, Apology, Sorry, Being Mean, Self-love, Feelings, Emotions, Angry, Sad, Troll, Name Calling, Teasing, Forgiveness, Friendship)