Tired of waiting his turn at the playground, Sam has a meltdown. A dark storm-cloud scribble appears over Sam’s head, then transforms into “a Temper.” The nasty monster runs amok, “shoving and tripping and pinching and stomping” everyone in its way. Intrigued by the Temper’s powers, Sam invites him home. Once there, much to the child’s chagrin, the Temper continues to wreak havoc by slamming doors, kicking walls, and dumping a plate of spaghetti on the floor. Sam’s mother wonders what has got into him, and his repeated excuse – “It’s not me … It’s my Temper” – is not well received. Peeved with his unruly pet, Sam valiantly struggles, and ultimately succeeds, in taming the beast.

Debut author Sangeeta Bhadra explores the subject of anger with honesty and humour. Without being heavy-handed, the text succinctly delivers its message (you must control your own temper; no one can do it for you) while also conveying Sam’s feelings of helplessness and frustration. Sam’s dialogue is minimal (“It wasn’t me”; “I can’t”; “No”), indicating that he hasn’t developed the linguistic maturity to express his conflicted feelings. When Sam shores up his inner resources, his final affirmative statement is his longest and boldest.

Marion Arbona’s stylized, mixed-media illustrations present the Temper as an out-of-control extension of Sam. The black ball of fury, with its flailing limbs, striped tail, and wide-mouthed grin, appears in unexpected places: hiding beneath the kitchen table and hanging on to the roof of a car. The limited colour palette of mostly black, white, dark blue, and red captures the intensity of Sam’s raw emotions. While in the throes of a tantrum, Sam loses himself; an illustration aptly shows the child’s feet heading to his room for a time-out while the Temper causes a scene behind him on the stairs.

Readers will relate to Sam’s anger-management issues, and the book is perfect for sparking conversations about negative emotions and how to keep them in check.