Angry Arthur by Hiawyn Oram. il by Satoshi Kitamura.
Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1982.
First published in Great Britain by Andersen Press, 1982.

Arthur is angry, because he doesn't want to go to bed. His anger builds and builds until his house and town are so far out in the universe that they become particles. Each increase of anger pushes him and his world a little farther, and he is told by his parents and grandparents that it is enough. Finally, he is tired from the drama and doesn't remember why he was angry.

This is a very cohesive story for one so brief. There are some great descriptions, such as a hurricane ripping off roofs. Well thought out and with a catastrophic event for each build.

As good as the story is, the illustrations are the best part. Each page adds to the story. Cracks in the room before the initial explosion, the devastated neighborhood, the town being washed away by a flood, and then the outer space pictures, Arthur hanging onto his anger all the while.

I wish I had known about this book when my kids were young.

RL=K-2nd, read aloud to toddler-1st