I read this book to my 2nd-grade class, and they were hooked right from the start. The bright illustrations captured their attention and kept them interested. The story connected with my students, so we ended up reading it multiple times. They loved it so much that they wanted to create their own alebrijes, and I’ve shared some of their artwork at the end of this review.

I was amazed at how this charming story sparked meaningful discussions about feelings, friendship, and what it means to be a good friend. If You Ever Need a Friend: An Alebrije Story was a big hit in my classroom. The kids enjoyed both the illustrations and the story. It opened up conversations that added a lot to our lessons about friendship and courage.

This is a sweet book with gorgeous, colorful pictures. It has a wonderful message for kids. It even has an art exercise at the end!

Who hasn’t needed a friend at some point in their life? Wouldn’t it be great if on a lonely day, a sad day, or a frustrating day you had the help of a fantastical creature to help you? An Alabrije?

This beautiful picture book with bright and charming illustrations will be pick up for you, or any child who reads it. 🌈♥️

Joaquin is having one of those days and feels invisible and unseen. When he follows a shimmery light in the playground, he finds himself in a magical place full of alebrijes- or magical companions. They help people manage their emotions- but not just kids, although he does find his best friend there, but adults as well. His Aunt even has a special one to help with her worries.

This cute tale will help us identify our needs, and work through them. With or without magical help. Emotions are normal- and we all need help with them at times.

The illustrations in this book are beautiful and really capture the spirit of the topic. The story was very sweet and speaks to how we all need a friend sometimes no matter how old we are

A wonderfully magical and encouraging story. We get to know Joaquin. He is struggling to speak up and feel included at school. Sometimes he feels very invisible. Until one day on the playground he discovers a light. This shimmering light transports him into a magical forest that is filled with alebrijes, they are magic companion animals. His friend Imogen shows him how the special creatures help people to manage their emotions and face their fears. Like the one who roars like a lion when Imogen feels angry.
This was a wonderfully written story written in such a creative and fun way to show children how to find ways to understand and deal with emotions. The illustrations are so bright,bold, colorful and amazing. A wonderful story to share with your family. This would even be a wonderful addition to any childhood classroom. You can create your own alebrije. Enjoy this wonderful adventure together.

I really liked this story and it has some brilliant illustrations to bring the book to life.

I liked the characters in the book and how the feelings of Joaquin change as the book progresses. I also liked the end when you get to see the mix of adults and children with their own Alebrije.

I thought that the story was easy to read and was a good introduction for children to what an Alebrije is and also a mini overview on Mexican culture for those that don't know much (it isn't taught in our schools in the UK in primary schools). It has inspired my daughter to want to find out more about Mexico in general too so that is a plus from the book.

It is 4 stars from me for this one - highly recommended!

3.5 stars

Joaquin is having a bad time, and suddenly he learns about alebrijes.
The colours are stunning, and the introduction of the alebrijes is well done.

Very beautiful, fresh, and meaningful story to help kids find their strength! I just wish the story's ending would have expanded a bit more. What I mean by that is I think this story ended in an odd way. I loved how the author concluded with showing readers that everyone, even adults, need a little extra help sometimes. However, I would have liked to see a conclusion on how the alebrije helped Joaquin. Other than that, though, I really enjoyed reading this book. The illustrations perfectly captured the breathtaking creativity of alebrijes, and it gave the book a dreamy feel, which worked well. Lastly, this book has such a good lesson for young readers: that you might need a friend to help you through tough times, but eventually you'll find your own strength. This is so important for young readers to see and read about.
Great book!

This book is like a warm colorful hug. I love the use of the bright vibrant colors because it really draws the reader in and makes the book attractive! I can see this being a popular book at my library amongst kids and parents alike!

Imaginative, colorful illustrations, fantastical creatures, and friends who help you through your most challenging obstacles. What’s not to love? I’ll admit that I absolutely love the idea of this book, but in execution, it fell short. The text of the story felt oddly stilted and the insertion of random Spanish words felt contrived. The illustrations were beautiful, but then the words felt like they were squeezed into available spaces, with a font that doesn’t match the aesthetic of the book and changes colors, sometimes making it difficult to read. Come for the colors. Stay for the history and making your own alebrije activity. Make up your own words and ignore mediocre text.

My thanks for the ARC goes to NetGalley and Shadow Mountain Publishing. I'm voluntarily leaving a review.

IF YOU EVER NEED A FRIEND, An Alebrije Story features a boy who doesn't feel comfortable at school. He discovers how to have an alebrije, who gives him confidence.

I loved the colorful illustrations and the alebrijes. It was fun to read a book centered around Latino culture. The message is a little on the nose, but I think kids will still enjoy this book because being scared is relatable and the illustrations draw you in.

Happy reading!

This book is wonderful. I love books that deal with children's emotions and teaching them different strategies on how to regulate them. Being Mexican-American, I felt very connected to this book particularly. This book both shows kids a way to process emotions as well as teaching them something about the Mexican culture. The art is beautiful and shows the beauty of the subject matter.

Good parts:
Use of colour in the illustrations
Inclusion of an activity which was realistic for the reader age group.
The opening was so strong and I had really high hopes for the book to talk properly about how children can and should approach others.

Bad parts
It did feel patronising at times instead of whimsical. I think this is a fine line in children’s literature and there were moment when that book failed that balance.
It did not offer a practical guide to helping with emotions

I love the premise of this book; creating a friend to help when we feel scared, anxious, angry, etc. This story tackles ways to handle some big feelings, and it's great that it also adds that adults need help too. Kids need to know that!

Unfortunately the text on my kindle was tiny, making it very difficult to read, and zooming in didn't make much difference.

#IfYouEverNeedaFriend #NetGalley

A beautifully illustrated and colorful book, on emotions and how everyone struggles with them. The book introduces a few Spanish words. The children in this story learn to deal with emotions by creating an alebrijes or magical animal.

The story of Joaquin who is having a hard day. With the help of a magical slide he is taken to a fantastical world and meets his alebrije. The colorful illustrations are perfect for the mythical creatures that serve as spirit guides. And the creatures help with the children’s emotions. The elementary school where I work as a librarian is a Spanish immersion school and this would be perfect for our shelves as there are several Spanish words used in the story. I only wish the words on the page were a bigger font for easier reading. I liked the information about alebrijes at the back and the questions.

If You Ever Need a Friend is beautiful inside and out. The message that we all need encouragement, help, a friendly face, or support of some kind from time to time really resonates. The illustrations are adorably bright and engaging. I love how the author incorporated Spanish words in a way that enables children to easily deduce the definition through context clues, giving them an introduction to another language. This is a book children will want to return to again and again.

*Thank you to NetGalley and Shadow Mountain Publishing for the arc, all thoughts and opinions are my own.

I'll admit that I only knew of alebrijes because of their depiction in Coco, so I was excited to learn more through If You Ever Need a Friend. This is such a cute story! Joaquin struggles with speaking up and getting involved, but with the help of his friend Imogen and a magical portal on the playground, he finds the path to his own alebrije.

The illustrations were super cute, and I especially love the pages with Joaquin's and Imogen's scribbled brainstorming. I only wish we'd actually seen Joaquin's growth in the end -- maybe his alebrije nudging him with the horns in another shy situation, etc.

All in all, I think this has a wonderful, timeless message for anyone who struggles with their self-confidence. We're never alone! ♥

(Thank you to NetGalley and the author for providing me with a free digital copy in exchange for an honest review.)

A beautiful story about our emotions and how we can cope with them. The story is relatable and fun, kids will love this. I love the cultural aspect of the story too, it was fun to learn more about alebrijes and their roles. The ending was wonderful. And the illustrations were so colorful and engaging. This is a story your kids will want to read again and again!

Thank you NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book!

This is a beautiful colorful book! I wish that the writing was a little big bigger, I had to enlarge the PDF for every page, to be able to read it. This book introduces foreign words (foreign to me, assuming Spanish). I felt like I kind of needed an introduction to the fact that there were going to be foreign words in the book, not because I don't like them or they don't belong, it was just startling and I had to think hard about what I was reading. It just wasn't quite what I expected. I'm not rating the book based on that feeling. I really enjoyed the explanation at the end of the book, however that will be to much for small children. I like that the child learned that even adults need help as well. I really liked the questions at the end of the book, they should spark some great discussions for the reader and listener. Thanks to Netgalley and Shadow Mountain Publishing for the opportunity to read this book.