I'm not making a word of this up...
http://search.barnesandnoble.com/bookSearch/isbnInquiry.asp?sourceid=00404525248617157652&ISBN=0525471553&bfdate=08-25-2003+11:17:24&popup=0&bfinfo=Jag From Our Editors
The Barnes & Noble Review
Popular country singer LeAnn Rimes exchanges her guitar pick for a pen, writing a gentle, confidence-building lesson on coping with fears in her first book aimed at kids. Glowing with the soft, lush hues of Richard Bernal's deep-colored illustrations of a grassy jungle, Rimes's picture book stars a little jaguar nicknamed Jag, who makes "a terrific roar for a tiny jaguar" but who's afraid of the water. The trouble for poor Jag is that it's time to start school, and she's worried about swim class and the reaction she'll get from the other students. Armed with some sage advice from her parrot friend, Isabel ("'Well, the way I see it, you're going to have to stand up to something very soon. Either your fears or your peers.'") and some loving reassurance from Mama, Jag heads off to school. There, her fears come true: She gets jeers from the other jaguars for her nickname and for getting scared by a fish. But then, Jag gets a chance to shine. When another little black jaguar who is also new at school gets ostracized for his looks, Jag's lion-sized roar puts the bullies in place and wins her a new pal. With a tender message, moving artwork, and inspiring feline hero, Rimes and Bernal deliver a warm, loving tale that'll have you and your little ones doing the two-step. Matt Warner
From the Publisher
Day after lazy day, Jag plays happily by herself in the jungle. She sees no reason for going to school. She'd rather practice her roar and climb up the monkey ladder to visit her friend Isabel the parrot. Isabel thinks Jag will love getting to know other jaguars her age. "Who needs that stuff?" says Jag.
The truth is, the mighty hunter Jag has a secret: she's terrified of water. She dreads the swimming lessons at school. "What if everyone laughs at me?" Jag asks her mother on the first day.
As soon as she states her name, the other jaguars do laugh, and by the time it comes to swimming, Jag is ready to disappear. But just when her secret is about to get out, another new student becomes the object of their ridicule. Will Jag join the crowd, or stand up to it?
Young schoolgoers will be inspired by Jag's feistiness and friendliness in this story about looking fears in the face.
