Parachute
By: Danny Parker ; Matt Ottley
Contributors: Ottley, Matt, illustrator
Publisher: Little Hare
Published: 2014
Place of publication: Richmond, Victoria, Australia
Language: eng
ISBN-13: 9781921894206
Subjects: Fear; Juvenile fiction
Description: Toby has a parachute that he always wears. He doesn't feel safe without it. He wears it everywhere he goes because he feels that it will protect him from all the things he is scared of. One day Toby's cat Henry gets stuck up a tree. Toby is scared of heights but he knows he has to help Henry. Toby climbs up the tree to Henry and tells him not to be afraid. He realises that the only way he can get Henry down safely is if he gives him his parachute. Without hesitation he takes it off and puts it on Henry so he can float safely to the ground. Then Toby realises that he is all alone, high up in the tree without his parachute. However, instead of being scared Toby starts to tell himself to be calm and to not be afraid, just like he told Henry when Henry was worried. Slowly Toby does start to feel less scared and eventually he is able to climb back down to the ground. After this experience Toby finds that he needs his parachute less and less and eventually he feels brave enough to leave it behind and face the day without it.
Notes: For pre-school age.