Mighty Thankful - Daniel Georges - ★★★★.¼

AUTHOR: Daniel Georges

GENRE: Children's Picture Book

PUBLICATION DATE: September 15, 2025

RATING: 4.25 stars.

In a Nutshell: A lovely picture book teaching a much-needed lesson in today’s world. Great story, quirky illustrations, excellent life lessons. A standalone new entrant to the ‘My Crazy Stories’ universe. Recommended.

Plot Preview:

When Jimmy’s parents are going out for the evening, they leave him in the hands of a new babysitter named Ms. Cherry. Jimmy behaves wonderfully until his parents leave, and then unleashes his hidden side. With him flexing his speed and fearlessness and temper, Ms. Cherry has a tough time keeping up. But then, something happens and Jimmy is forced to question his attitude.

The story is written in Jimmy’s first-person perspective.

We are living in a material world, and we are raising a material generation because of our short-term thinking. Giving so many things to children – at times, even if they don’t need anything new – trains children to take their possessions for granted. Instead of being grateful for what they have, they constantly want more. The blame for this is entirely on the shoulders of the caregivers, no doubt. But here’s a storybook that will hopefully help kids themselves realise their privilege.

Jimmy’s character is representative of many children today. He has no value for what he owns, does what he wants without respect for those around him, and throws tantrums when things don’t go his way. Plus, he shows one side of his personality in front of his parents, and behind their back, the paragon of virtue turns into the pinnacle of obstinacy.

Ms. Cherry was an angel; I would have lost my cool with Jimmy within the first five minutes. While I would have preferred her to be more stern, I still admire how she instilled good values in Jimmy without demeaning him. Moreover, her admonishment isn't restricted to generalised aphorisms but includes practical advice. More kids could do with such babysitters (and parents).

As the story comes in Jimmy’s first-person POV, it has quite easy-to-understand vocabulary, There is a good use of capitalisation, repetition, hyperbole, and exclamations. Some lines are written in slang, but they suit Jimmy’s verbal style. While there is a lot of text on some pages, it is neatly spaced out and never feels cluttered.

The illustrations are somewhat quirky. As the character sketches aren’t in the typical style we see in children’s books, the graphics have a sort of freshness. Ms. Cherry’s eyes appear somewhat devoid of emotion at times, but this is counterbalanced by Jimmy’s vivid expressions. You can actually see the mischievous glint in his eyes. While the illustrations are digitally sketched by the author, many of the pages include inserts of actual photos. The page with the popcorn disaster, for instance, uses images of actual popcorn kernels to indicate the mess. This takes some time to get used to, but the technique adds an unusual depth and realism to the otherwise cartoonish look. I especially loved the “Let’s Fly” page, with the graphics transitioning from Jimmy to someone special to Cherry – so beautifully done!

Overall, this is a great story to inculcate an attitude of gratitude in little ones (and hopefully, in their parents too. It delivers well on entertainment as well as morals, thus making it an excellent option for children.

This book is a part of the ‘My Crazy Stories’ series, which seems to be a set of standalone books each focussing on one important moral lesson. Given my experience with this book, I’d definitely love to explore more books from this series.

Much recommended. This picture book would be a great option for little ones aged 3-8 years.

My thanks to My Crazy Stories and IBPA for providing the DRC of “Mighty Thankful” via NetGalley. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.