Monster Mender – Perfect Picture Book Friday

There are some topics in picture books that may be better treated through the use of animal characters and a light touch. Young readers tend to insert themselves in the place of a main character, so if that topic is sensitive, making an animal a main character offers a bit of emotional distance. Such is the case in MONSTER MENDER.

First off, the title intrigues because most readers would associate the word “monster” with something bad, something that is to be feared, avoided, and/or destroyed. But Dot, the girl seen on the cover and introduced on the first spread, is a healer of monsters.

I love how industrious she is. Dot’s awake before dawn, dressed, and eating her oatmeal because she has so many patients to see. The shapes and textures on this illustration are interesting. The upper left is possibly a cozy canopied bed with a seal stuffy and drawers underneath, an early morning sunrise outside a porthole-style window, and myriad wispy plants that may be used in her medicines.

The next spread finds Dot hard at work.

Each “monster”—a gryphon, a chimera, a dragon, and a kraken, all have boo-boos or a sneezy cold. Talk about endearing! Look at the vulnerability expressed on those “monster” faces. It’s impossible to think of them as fearsome. Once Dot is done making her rounds, she checks her inventory of remedies.

And that’s when a new patient knocks on her door, a sea serpent. One that looks rather ominous, at first. But it turns out, that frown hides subtle pain.

"What seems to be the trouble?" Dot asked.
"I'm sad," he said. "Very sad."
He told her that sometimes he doesn't want 
to come out from under the waves. Instead,
he dives deeper beneath them and traces
circles on the ocean floor.

Sometimes he spreads his fins like wings
and flies high enough to brush the clouds
with the tip of his tail.

But then again sometimes he wants to be alone even though he wishes he wasn’t. Dot is perplexed. The serpent doesn’t have any of the usual boo-boos she cures. And when she asks him what he’s sad about, he can’t quite say. Even though this embarrasses him, he admits that he’s not “just” sad, he’s “very sad.” It IS embarrassing when you can’t put a finger on your sadness and feel like you SHOULD be happy. Like you need something concrete to tell someone to explain the sadness. Otherwise, you’re just a complainer.

But Dot doesn’t make him feel guilty or tell him to just be happy. Instead, she springs into action trying every sort of cure, because after all, she is a very good monster mender. She picks fresh ingredients, makes “teas, tinctures, and tonics,” but nothing works.

The interesting thing is….even though nothing works, and even though some of the treatments taste bad, the sea serpent likes being in Dot’s company. Although, even when Dot invites the serpent to accompany her on a house call, he declines, but appreciates her asking. As they develop a deeper relationship, Dot starts to question her abilities as a monster mender, because the serpent never gets “cured,” the sadness just “comes and goes” at will.

When Dot asks what makes the sadness go, the serpent replies:

"It's when you invite me to for a slither,
but don't mind if I say no...It's when you 
let me be quiet, and you hug my tail
as tightly or as lightly as I need you to..."

Dot thinks those are such little things, but the serpent replies:

"Those are not little things...
Not even to someone as big as me."

And that, my friends, acknowledges the truth about depression. It can come and go. It may not be curable. But a good friend can be sensitive to the needs of a friend who is sad and just be there for them. I love how depression is presented in a child-friendly way for readers who may struggle with their own sadnesses or have friends who do. A terrific book for developing social and emotional skills around empathy and understanding the elusive nature of sadness.

The magical, vibrant illustrations are sure to captivate readers, as are the struggles of this sweet sea serpent and Dot’s warm-hearted attempts to mend what cannot be mended. Most importantly, this story shows how listening, acceptance, and yes, allowing a friend the space to sit quietly or be left alone is sometimes the best way to help someone who’s sad. Of course, a child who struggles with depression should also be offered professional assistance, but that’s a charge for the child’s parents or caregiver.

Monster Mender releases on May 5, 2026.

Activities:

Make an origami dragon (sea serpent) (if you have square origami paper, you can skip the opening section of the video)

Write a list poem about being a monster mender. Start it with “If I Were a Monster Mender, I’d….” You could include the kinds of boo-boos different monsters might have and what you’d use to fix them. Then make a list poem about some things you can do to to help a friend who might be sad. Start it by writing, “If I had a friend who was sad, I’d…”

Parents, caregivers, and teachers can check out this Johns Hopkins article about depression in children and teens.

Title: Monster Mender

Author: Christine Baldacchino

Illustrator: Ilona Iske

Publisher: Groundwood Books (House of Anansi Press), 2026

Themes: sadness (depression), being a friend, SEL

Ages: Elementary school

For more perfect picture book recommendations, please visit Susanna Hill’s website.