Meeting strangers makes shy possum Alfred anxious, and he plays dead.
So he has trouble making friends--until Sophia the armadillo reveals
that when she gets anxious, she rolls up in a ball. A witty friendship
tale inspired by animal behavior.
In this winsome tale, Alfred, who plays dead, and Sophia, who rolls up
in a ball, stand in for shy or anxious humans whose discomfort keeps
them from fitting in. Jennifer Black Reinhardt has cast animals with
defense mechanisms as characters to tell an imaginative, endearing story
about learning to make friends by mastering fear and shyness. Alfred and
Sofia open up to each other and go on to help other creatures who have
social difficulties by practicing patience, forgiveness, and
friendship--tools for overcoming the barriers that keep us from
connecting with others. An author's note lists real animals and their
defensive behaviors.