Thank you Netgalley and Capstone for an ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: 01 Jan 2023

Why I picked up the book: I let my son pick out some books to read together and the cover caught his eye and the title of the book caught mine.

What I liked the most about the book: Illustrations are on point! I also loved the STEM representation in this book!

Who I would recommend to read this book: Yes! My son loved going through the decision tree at the end to navigate to sunny or stormy skies. We've been having issues transitioning from daycare to school and this story fit right in with some of our discussions regarding consequences based on actions with the decision tree.

If you like the Ada Twist, Scientist series on Netflix or the book series - you will love this book! I plan to add this one to our collection.

Rating: 5/5*

Genre: Children's Fiction | Humor

#ABadCaseoftheAlmosts #NetGalley

This is an extremely cute book. The art is adorable - I just want to squeeze Abby's little cheeks! - and the lesson is a clever one that many young kids could stand to learn, but not too preachy. I honestly wish they had gone even a little further with finding the positives of the "almosts" in Abby's life. At the end of the book she's left with the "bad almosts" of "Almost getting 100% on the test" and "Almost being at the front of the line." While those are situations where she'd obviously like to go beyond almost, almost still leaves her in a pretty good place! I initially thought that was the direction this book was going to go in, but it focused more on being grateful for the bad things that didn't happen (e.g. almost getting hit in the face by a soccer ball). There were some legitimately disappointing almosts in the book, like not getting to go on a ride and not getting a prize at school, where being super close feels still means missing the fun.

In the back of the book it has a "decision tree" that I was a little confused by. It seems like you're supposed to pick one of a few different responses to an unfortunate "almost" and then follow a string of results to see how it turns out. This is more of a story than a series of natural results, though - deep breathing leads to cleaning your brother's room? This felt more like the template for a Choose Your Own Adventure book than a useful teaching tool (especially since the positive choices don't necessarily lead to outcomes that a kid would consider positive, and vice versa).

Overall, I really enjoyed seeing the way that Abby learned from her experiences and was empowered to take charge of how she felt. The ending, when she realized she could amend her own "too scared" to "almost too scared," was very sweet.

I received a free review copy from NetGalley.

What a fun way to look at the word almost. Often (like Abby) we see almost as such a bad thing. Slowly she realizes that sometimes its not as bad as we thought. I loved the science experiment-like element with a list of good and bad almosts and Abby working on her conclusion while trying to experience new things. This was a fun one to read to my kids and very easy to read.

Oh Abby, I feel ya girl!!!
'Almosts' are THE worst, for realz!

When you feel like life hits ya in the gut, over and over again - it's hekkin' hard to think positive and then everything seems to pile on and get worse (even though it might not be, it just feels like it).

Abby was feeling some sort of way every time she didn't quite get what she wanted. Determined she had had enough, she was going to quit the science fair and stop trying- NOOO WAY, MMMKAY- not gonna happen, not today! When someone proved to have worse luck than she did, Abby decided that maybe she had to do some legit thinking before she came to the conclusion that 'almost' was a bad thing.

HOW FLIPPING CUTE was this book!!!?? The STEM representation in a childrens book- HECK YES! Abby got down to business testing and analyzing - EVEN WITH A HYPOTHESIS- each 'almost' that she came across. Was it a bad thing? Was it a good thing?
I thought once Abby started looking at the bigger picture, she realized that something she may have thought was a BAD almost - may be for her- but is a GOOD almost for someone else. She started looking at the positives of any negative that came her way. THEN SHE EVEN HELPED HER LITTLE BROSKI to overcome his fear of jumping in the pool- WIN WIN ALL AROUND! YOU GO, ABBY!

I think this is a brilliant book to hone in on this with students or children. It was delightful, colorful, fun and relatable.

BONUSSSSS! There is a 'decision tree' at the end that can be used to guide appropriate reactions in situations we cannot control.

Abby had a bad case of the Almosts. She was almost tall enough, almost aced her test and more. Then, she discovers that the Almosts might be a good thing too. She conducts an experiment to see if she is right. A good story about discovery and using scientific methods to determine it's accuracy. Written in a cute way kids can understand. Wonderful and funny illustrations.


I received an ARC from Capstone, Capstone Editions through NetGalley. This in no way affects my opinion or rating of this book. I am voluntarily submitting this review and and under no obligation to do so.

A Bad Case of The Almosts is a fun story about dealing with adversity. The illustrations are really great. A visually pleasing book with a positive message.

Thank you, Capstone, for the advance reading copy.

The book looks almost perfect from the cover! No doubt it's a good storybook with some little but lasting life lessons for the young readers on how not to take things so harshly on the "almost" things that happen in life. It can be good or bad depending on the situation.

The book tries to tell this difference.

I feel the story might be a little confusing in between.

The illustration is so good. Kudos to the artist! Looking forward to your other works!

I loved the illustrations in this book and thought it was a great amount of text per page. I thought it made trying to look on the bright side understandable for kids, and gave great tools for examining your own reactions and expectations. My only issue with this was I thought the flow chart at the end was challenging to navigate with so many overlapping arrows and options.

This book was so amazing. So so cute. If I could give it 10 stars I would.
I don't have kids, but I do have friends with kids. This book I would buy it for them. Aside from the illustrations which let me say were really cute, this book gives so many lessons about life's perspective. As a kid I was always a perfectionist. And because I couldn't do all the things I wanted I was disappointed . So if I had this book, my childhood would be better.
It's ok not to do something perfectly. And if you see it from another perspective, you might not miss the positive side of it.
So again, read this book. It's great.

Abby is tired of living with a bad case of the almosts. She is almost tall enough to enter rides, almost gets a perfect score on a test, and almost gets to the last cookie before her brother. Over and over, the almosts add up to anger Abby. But soon she finds herself almost missing a puddle and watches as the girl behind her falls in. Suddenly she realizes that almosts can also be a good thing!

Great for K-3 readers, this book tells a wonderful story about how we can change our perspectives on things that almost frustrate us too much.

I really enjoyed this book, the illustrations are vibrant and I loved the multiple settings. There is also a great flow chart at the end that you can go through with your reader to help them understand how our reactions to things can dictate whether they turn our good or bad.

Thank you so much to Netgalley and Capstone publishing for the opportunity to read and review this title, releasing in early 2023.

Such a cute sweet book that would be perfect to add to any child’s library. This is a book I wold love to read to my niece, I think it has a great message for kids to think about. I especially love how the girl in love science. This is a very enjoyable book with a good message

This story is very easy for kids to relate to. I think they need to see that we often almost do things. Great for discussions and extension activities.

A Bad Case of the Almosts by Janet Sumner Johnson is a great children's book. Abby does an experiment to see if almosts can be both good and bad. At first, she thinks almosts are bad but does the experiment and sees that almosts are also good.

The illustrations are amazing and so bright and colorful. The images really bring the book to life. A very quick read that any child or adult will enjoy.

This is a 5 out of 5 stars!

#ABadCaseoftheAlmosts #NetGalley @CapstonePub

such a cute and fun read for me and my kids!
Easy and simple for all while still holding their attention

This is a lovely book about how perspective can change our perceptions of good and bad. The illustrations were great, and I liked how they depicted a little girl with room decor and outfits that are traditionally "boyish" (monsters, outer space, trucks, etc). I liked this a lot and would recommend it to friends.

A fun romp into putting situations into perspective. The text flows well and is easy to follow. It took me on a rollercoaster of emotion, feeling sad for Abby then feeling relieved for her. An excellent read for kids who might feel down about never quite being or having enough. Fun additions included like a flow chart of possible reactions to situations and the ripple effects they could cause.

Also, Alexandra Colombo knocked the illustrations out of the park! Abby’s facial expressions are perfectly encapsulating of her emotions, but why does her mom always look so angry?

I adored this book. Such a wonderful book to have on the shelves in any house or classroom.

Our main character has a bad case of the 'almosts'. Nothing seems to be going her way as she almost beats her brother to the bathroom. and almost got the last biscuit. But soon, Abby comes to realise that almost might not always be a bad thing.

This is a great story which teachers a lesson that many young people may struggle with. It teaches children not to give up and remonstrate resilience. I loved the science themes to this book, including asking questions, making hypothesis, conducting research and making decision trees. I love science in books and I think it is really important for children to see themselves as researchers.

The illustrations for this book are fantastic, bright and colourful and very eye catching. I highly recommend this book!

Abby, an adorable little girl, is obsessed with the term "almost" running her life. She "almost" beat her brother to the bathroom, "almost" finished cleaning up her room, "almost" got 100 percent on her science test, and "almost" had enough money to buy a toy dinosaur ... and the list goes on and on and on.

When Abby witnesses another girl falling in the exact same place that she did, sadly a face plant, Abby tells her she almost fell there too. The girl stands back up and tells Abby she was lucky to "ALMOST" have fallen. This gets Abby thinking could "almost" actually be a good thing?" Mmmmmm?

Not always being able to do the things you want leaves one feeling sad and disappointed but it is part of life. It is a lovely lesson to learn.

The illustrations are fantastic! They are colourful and expressive and full of emotion and humour. The author has included The Decision Tree at the end of the book which was a stroke of genius. It is a visual for kids who need an example of how to make decisions and manage how they react to problems that may occur in their life. The book is well written and inspirational. This would be an excellent book to include in a classroom setting and in the school library. I love the book and highly, highly recommend it.

This was a sweet picture book that I think many people will be able to relate to. There are often a lot of "almosts" that occur in day-to-day life and all of those "almosts" can certainly become frustrating at times. There were some "almosts" in the book that didn't make much sense to me. But it was nice that the book highlighted that "almost" can sometimes be a good thing, and sometimes not-so-good. The illustrations were bold and colorful. Overall, a fun, relatable book.

I LOVED this!!! I am pro science books for kids that show girls actually doing and enjoying the science instead of being passively involved. Abby has a question about the effects of "almost" and poses a research question, makes a hypothesis, and sets up an experiment to see if all Almosts are bad. The decision tree at the end was a fantastic visual rep for kids who need an example of how to manage their reactions to problems they can't control. I nanny a 5-year-old girl and will absolutely be getting her this book when it hits shelves!!