3/24/2016
"The Pout Pout Fish" by Deborah Diesen
Copyright 2008, 32 pages
Fantasy

Image taken from Google Books

This book is a favorite among my students. It's funny, has lots of pictures, and generally easy to read. There are indeed big words here and there, but even without the big words students can still work out the story by looking at the pictures. The illustrations are cartoon-like, and as adorable as anything. Forget kids - even as an adult I find this book enjoyable. That said, I do wonder if the moral of this story is one I agree with. If we know someone who is a real-life, human version of Pout Pout Fish, chances are they're not exactly "pouting". They're probably stressed or depressed, and kissing them right in the face is probably not the best solution to cheer them up. Speaking of cheering people up, I also don't like how this book portrays that sad equals bad, and happy equals good. We are humans because we feel a multitude of emotions. Being restricted to only one emotion is not at all fair, nor is it the kind of mindset I want my students to develop. If we're talking about depression specifically, then this book represents the very stigma surrounding it. We see all the other fish in the ocean telling Pout Pout Fish to smile - to try harder to smile. There's even one fish that blatantly said that his sad face bothers everyone else. That is, sadly, exactly how most people with mental illness are treated in the society. Except there's no such thing as a big fish with red lipstick giving out free kisses in our real world. Meaning: there is no such thing as a finger-snap, immediate solution to depression. Being kind to your sad friends is a good starting point. But don't expect them to "cheer up". In fact, if the definition of "cheer up" is "laugh a lot and be social", then don't expect anyone to cheer up. Again: we are humans because we feel a multitude of emotions. It's alright if someone is introverted, or prefers to be alone. Sad is not bad!