From New York Times bestselling illustrator Sydney Hanson comes a sweet and calming picture book that helps instill life skills in young readers with basic, age-appropriate concept learning. Penguin is anxious amidst the hustle and bustle of his busy colony. He wishes to feel calm inside, but he doesn’t know how! Thankfully, a few of his Antarctica friends teach him their strategies for finding inner peace. Before long, Penguin can use his own zen techniques to handle a stressful situation, earning him his new name – Zenguin!
- Books
- Kids Fiction & Indies
- Kids Fiction
- Zenguin
Zenguin
Author(s)
Publisher
Age Range
4+
Release Date
January 06, 2026
ISBN
978-1523528660
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Editor reviews
2 reviews
engaging book about finding your inner peace
(Updated: June 21, 2026)
Overall rating
4.0
Plot
4.0
Characters
4.0
Writing Style
4.0
Illustrations/Photos (if applicable)
4.0
ZENGUIN is a cute picture book about finding ways to stay calm. Penguin is a bit overwhelmed with all the hustle and bustle of penguin life. After a troubling time, he travels to ask other animals how they find their calm, learning about breathing and yoga. After practicing, Penguin is able to bring those back to the penguins and find his calm in any situation.
What I loved: This is an overall cute way to help teach children about ways to find their calm in a busy world. The story includes instructions for some of these basic techniques and gives readers the tools to practice them at a basic level in their own lives. The story is fairly straight-forward throughout.
Due to length and content, this may work best for early elementary school readers, who might be experiencing more turmoil and overwhelm with school and similar situations. The writing is easy to follow, and the illustrations are soothing and soft. Ultimately, the book includes some helpful tips for staying calm that they can use in their own lives.
Final verdict: Overall, ZENGUIN is a helpful tool for children who are learning to find their inner peace in a tumultuous world.
What I loved: This is an overall cute way to help teach children about ways to find their calm in a busy world. The story includes instructions for some of these basic techniques and gives readers the tools to practice them at a basic level in their own lives. The story is fairly straight-forward throughout.
Due to length and content, this may work best for early elementary school readers, who might be experiencing more turmoil and overwhelm with school and similar situations. The writing is easy to follow, and the illustrations are soothing and soft. Ultimately, the book includes some helpful tips for staying calm that they can use in their own lives.
Final verdict: Overall, ZENGUIN is a helpful tool for children who are learning to find their inner peace in a tumultuous world.
Zen Gardens Made of Snow
(Updated: June 21, 2026)
Overall rating
4.0
Plot
4.0
Characters
4.0
Writing Style
4.0
Illustrations/Photos (if applicable)
4.0
Penguin has a busy life in Antarctica with his large community, but sometimes it gets to be too much. There is a lot of noise and commotion, and he has a younger sister, Pip, who is very vocal. One day, after squabbling over a fish with Pip, he yells at everyone to be quiet and stomps off. Taking a moment to regroup, he recalls that some of his friends talk about a feeling of calm called "zen". He asks Blue Whale how to stay calm, and Blue Whale teaches Penguin to take deep breaths. Seal models yoga practices, and Gull explains how his wintery zen garden helps him stay calm. All of these things help him feel calmer. When Pip gets tangled up in her knitting yarn after a gust of wind, Penguin helps her to calm down so he can untangle her by uses some of the methods he has learned. Pip is glad to be free, and the next day brings her brother a sweater with his name on it. The last page includes some calming techniques.
Good Points
Since Pip's use of double pointed knitting needles for creating a glove is quite well rendered, we will imagine that she has been working on the sweater for Penguin for some time, but decides to give it to him after her incident. It's a lovely sweater, complete with either a color work or duplicate stitch name, so she didn't whip that up overnight, especially since fitting a sweater over wings can't be easy!
Hanson's illustrations are rendered in soft blues and grays, with some touches of purple, reflect the wintery landscape and penguin monotones while also infusing an air of calm. There's a delightfully fuzzy quality to the pictures that makes Penguin and Pip seems very cuddly.
This simple story has some clever moments; having different animals teach Penguin calming techniques is inspired, and I particularly loved Gull's snow zen garden. The heart on Penguin's chest is somehow an endearing touch.
There are a growing number of children's picture books about mindfulness, and Zenguin joins the list of these that includes Davison and Allright's Every Bunny is a Yoga Bunny, Verde and Reynold's I Am Peace, Sooful and Zacarias' Counting to Calm, Wilson's Think: A Celebration of Mindfulness, and Gravel's Puppy in My Head.
Hanson's illustrations are rendered in soft blues and grays, with some touches of purple, reflect the wintery landscape and penguin monotones while also infusing an air of calm. There's a delightfully fuzzy quality to the pictures that makes Penguin and Pip seems very cuddly.
This simple story has some clever moments; having different animals teach Penguin calming techniques is inspired, and I particularly loved Gull's snow zen garden. The heart on Penguin's chest is somehow an endearing touch.
There are a growing number of children's picture books about mindfulness, and Zenguin joins the list of these that includes Davison and Allright's Every Bunny is a Yoga Bunny, Verde and Reynold's I Am Peace, Sooful and Zacarias' Counting to Calm, Wilson's Think: A Celebration of Mindfulness, and Gravel's Puppy in My Head.
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