What sets this book apart is its ability to teach young readers a valuable lesson without being preachy. It subtly reminds us all, regardless of age, of the importance of empathy and understanding.

Johnny is a picturebook written and illustrated by Guido van Genechten. It is currently scheduled for release in English on June 1 2018, but was previously published in Dutch. Johnny is a very sweet spider, but nobody knows it. Because everywhere Johnny goes, the other insects run screaming out the door without giving him a chance. Filled with humor and heart, this book will show young readers the importance of not judging someone by appearances. A book filled with humor and heart for spider lovers ages 3 and up.

Johnny is a sad spider. He just wants to be friends, and share his birthday cake but the insects he asks are too afraid to look past his appearance, and that he is a spider that in nature might be interested in snacking on them, to trust him. I can understand their reluctance, they do not want to be lunch, but their words and actions are hurtful to Johnny who is just trying to be nice. I think this book could be a great discussion starter about why we should give people a chance, and not judging others based on things they have no control over, like appearance. However, I think it might be better learned when the characters are not likely to actually eat each other in the real world- or at least have a reasonable substitution plan. Spiders need to eat insects (or bigger stuff depending on the spider) and I think most spider lovers are well aware of the nature of spiders.

The artwork is cute and charming, and does a good job of capturing Johnny's emotions and still being fun. I think Johnny is a good, fun picturebook but not one that blew me away.

Johnny is an adorable spider with a secret to share, but everyone's afraid of him! Wanna know his secret? It's his birthday, and he wants to share his cake! This adorable book by Guido van Genechten is a good story to read when talking to kids about judging others based solely on appearances.

I have to admit, I needed to read this one a couple of times because I felt so bad for Johnny! It's his birthday, and he's all alone because everyone's afraid of him! And then I figured it out: that's the point. I mean, I know it was the point to begin with, but having Johnny celebrate with only the reader by the story's end leaves a reader feeling badly - and that's the time to talk about empathy. Ask kids how they would feel if people didn't want to be near them because someone didn't like the way they looked. Ask how they would feel if they had a birthday party and no one came! And then, for heaven's sake, throw Johnny a birthday party: have some cupcakes and fruit punch, and sing Happy Birthday to the poor guy. He deserves it. Guido van Genechten's cute, expressive, boldly outlined artwork is instantly recognizable and appealing to younger readers.

Johnny is very nice spider but nobody knows that because as soon as they see him, they run from him. I think this book had potential, and I wanted someone to give the spider a chance. It just never happened.

Johnny is just a spider looking for someone to share his cake. It’s his third birthday, but everyone runs away when he comes around. A sweet story with an unusual ending for a children’s picture book.

Jonnie is a nice little spider but everyone sees him as something creepy and scary and does not come near him. It teaches that you should not judge anyone by their looks. Illustrations are cute and funny. Thanks to netgalley and the publisher.

Cute and fun for the pre-K set. Johnny is a spider who scares all the critters away - snails, worms, insects, etc. They all think he's gross. But he's really very nice and only wants to share a piece of birthday cake.

Book about a misunderstood spider. It kinda made me sad that no one ended up sharing his cake with him, the ending was unsatisfying.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in return for an honest review.

Johnny was the story of a spider who just wanted a friend. Unfortunately, everyone he came across was afraid of him or didn't like him. I wasn't a fan of this book because of the unkind things that were said about the spider with no real resolution. The book just made me sad and didn't really feel that silly to me.

I felt like there could have been a “don’t be so quick to judge” message in “Johnny,” but there wasn’t. It made the story feel thin, even though it was a cute book.

I think the author is trying to demonstrate that you shouldn’t judge the spider by its looks or reputation, but I felt the overall tone of this story was too negative for young children. I also don’t think it’s a good idea to tell children to kiss a spider if they see one…not all spiders are harmless.

I think this was a cute book but I'm not a huge fan of the ending. If this book was trying to convey we shouldn't be scared I spiders then I appreciate showing a different side of spiders but I don't think it's great advice to tell kids to kiss spiders when they see them because some can be dangerous. However, if this is meant to be a representation for accepting people who are different from you and not judging a book by its cover (which I hope it is) I can appreciate the message here but again the ending felt incomplete. I think the better message would be for the other insects to find some common ground with Johnny and see that they are not so different. I think it's important for kids to learn to be accepting of the differences we may have and give people a chance, as they often can surprise you. So overall, I liked the illustrations, and the message seemed to be great in the beginning but I think it missed the mark in the end. However, I may be over thinking this and the message may get through to kids.

I received an ARC of this book via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Johnny can’t find anyone who wants to play with him, young readers can empathize with this problem that often doesn’t have a simple solution. The resolution to the book is refreshingly different from the conclusion I expected, instead it is realistic and a completely acceptable solution if no one else wants to play. Playing alone is an important skill for kids to learn and can be empowering if the child learns it is ok to be alone sometimes. Too often books focus on rejection, then acceptance when the protagonist finds the right friend. But what happens when the right friend hasn’t shown up yet? Johnny has a lot to offer his potential friends and he knows it.

I think this book had potential, adorable artwork paired with the beginnings of a good story about prejudgment and the difficulties of making friends. However, the narrative arc felt short, and there seemed to be an incomplete and/or depressing message.

What a cute but incredibly depressing read. It's a story of a little spider who just wants to make friends, but everyone is terrified of him and runs away when he comes around. I loved the idea at first that it would teach children not to be afraid of things they don't understand, but by the end of the story, little Johnny still didn't have any friends. Kids like happy endings in books, so adding a scene of Johnny making a friend in the end would have changed this from 2 stars to 4 for me. (The artwork isn't great, so I took off a star for that.)

I love Guido van Gnechten books! So fun! This one is a real gem. Who wants to be friends with a spider?? Snail doesn't, neither does butterfly. Will spider find a friend to share his birthday cake with? Cute story! Fun illustrations! Would make a fun birthday gift for a little one!

Johnny is a black hairy spider. Johnny has a sweet temperament and a huge heart but nobody knows because when they see him they judge him by his stinky, prickly, filthy, fat, ugly, scary appearance (according to them) and run screaming out the door.

It's Johnny's third birthday and he has something very special to share but alas... the grasshopper sees him and yells, "EEK!" and jumps far away, the bee buzzes,"AAACK!" and quickly whizzes away, the butterfly shouts, "EEK!" and flutters high in the sky, the snail reacts with, "UGH!"and withdraws into her little house, and the worm responds, "YUCK!" and crawls back under the ground. Poor Johnny... nobody will even give him a chance to introduce himself. All he wants to do is to share his birthday cake with everyone on his special day. Finally after a few tears because of all the rejections he takes things into his own hands and celebrates it his own way. BURRP!!!!

Johnny is truly an adorable, lovable character. The book reminds the reader not to judge a book by its cover (or perhaps a spider by his outward appearance) as it's the heart that is the most important thing to focus on not how one looks.

Johnny’s the nicest being ever, but because he’s a big hairy spider everyone’s afraid of him (wow, the author KNOWS me!).
No real ending to the story, unless you count eating a whole cake by yourself. There’s a lesson here for readers, but the other characters in the story don’t get the chance to learn it.

I always read children's books before introducing it to my kids. You know, to make sure it actually has a moral to the story and or its something fun for them to read. But after reading Jonnie, I must say I was perplexed with the reactions of how Jonnie was treated. Jonnie is a nice sweet spider but everyone see him as something creepy and scary. wished author played this out differently. The illustration was good it looked like a happy reading even though the story felt harsh. Not going to lie, I didn't let my kid read it. He would react the same as the characters did with Jonnie and the ending had a vibe of "oh well" into it. Not really wanting to recommend it but that's just me.

Thank you Net galley for giving me an ebook of Jonnie to review it.

An excellently drawn and wonderfully told tale for students and readers alike.