View source for Eric the Boy Who Lost His Gravity by Jenni Desmond

{{infobox2
|title=Eric the Boy Who Lost His Gravity
|author=Jenni Desmond
|reviewer=Ruth Ng
|genre=For Sharing
|rating=4
|buy=Yes
|borrow=Yes
|isbn=978-1609053482
|pages=40
|publisher=Blue Apple Books
|date=April 2014
|aznuk=1609053486
|aznus=1609053486
|cover=1609053486
|website=http://www.jennidesmond.com/
|video=
|summary=Unusual and funny, this is an interesting look at what happens when a child gets angry!
}}
Everyone gets angry sometimes.  Maybe all it takes is someone queue-jumping, or in the case of my toddler, all it takes is the wrong colour cup, or someone playing with the one toy in the world that he wants right at that moment!  The challenge for children growing up (and for adults too sometimes!) is how to deal with that anger.  This story is about what happens when a little boy called Eric gets angry.

It's a rainy weekend, and Eric and his little sister Alice are stuck playing indoors.  Alice wants to join in playing with Eric, but Eric doesn't want her to.  So then Alice messes up Eric's train tracks, and when Eric stomps off and builds a tower instead, Alice knocks it down, and then she spoils his play tent and, of course, it's Eric who gets into trouble.  Poor Eric!  Eric gets crosser and crosser until, suddenly, he's so angry that he starts to float up into the air.  He's lost his gravity!  Down on the ground his parents stare up, aghast at their son and blaming each other for their son who is now running around on the ceiling!

Eric runs away, out of the window, floating in the sky.  Suddenly he starts to feel happy, floating around, but as he gets happier his gravity comes back and he falls into a tree.  Up in the tree he misses his family, and his little sister is missing him too.  They come to rescue him from the tree, happy to have found each other again.  But whilst Eric and his parents are reunited, Alice is getting cross.  She's lost her bunny.  Eric can see that something isn't right and, yes, suddenly she starts to float up into the air as she gets crosser and crosser.  Quick as a flash, Eric fetches Alice's rabbit and, thankfully, all is well again!

This is a charming story.  I love the idea of children floating up and away when they get too angry, though I imagine if this really happened the skies would be rather crowded with tantrumming toddlers!  It's easy to see why Eric gets angry, and it makes a useful story to share with older siblings who perhaps feel they get unfairly blamed for everything, and who are forever dealing with disruptive younger brothers or sisters.  I like that Eric later recognises the signs of anger in his little sister, and that he can quickly move to stop her tantrum.

The illustrations might perhaps be seen as rather childlike by some - the children's faces are very plainly drawn, but there is something about the scribbled mouths and eyes that works well to portray the emotions within the story.  I particularly like the page when Eric is up on the ceiling and his parents are down below, ranting to each other about whose fault it is, with little sister Alice looking on bemused.

This is a fun story to share with any older toddler or key stage one child, though it will hold particular resonance for those with annoying siblings who wind them up and get them into trouble!

You might also enjoy reading these stories: [[It Wasn't Me (The Hueys) by Oliver Jeffers]] and [[Marvin Gets MAD! by Joseph Theobald]]

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