Don't Worry!

Nina and her pet turtle Connie are preparing a surprise birthday cake for mom, but the ingredients are missing! The two set off on an urban adventure to gather the missing ingredients. But something along the way doesn’t go right and Nina worries the birthday surprise is ruined. Don’t worry, Nina! With help from friends and family, Nina and Connie make Mamma’s birthday surprise even more special!

“Dipasquale’s drawing style is reminiscent of Beginner Books of the 1970s, employing a limited color palette of light, textured pastels to great effect on white backgrounds. A sense of happiness and community flows through the story, leading exquisitely into the brief despair of Nina’s mishap. A sweet story celebrating the open, familial nature of an urban community.”

“Appearing in muted hues of mustard yellow, rusty red, and light blue, Carla Dipasquale’s illustrations feel inviting and charmingly vintage. Nina’s neighbors, too, seem plucked from another era, with the characters wearing dresses or trousers and preferring playing cards or reading the paper to staring idly at televisions or smartphones. This sweetly old-school story calls up the best kind of nostalgia and celebrates the power of kindness.”

“Carla Dipasquale has been a bookseller at I AM Books since the store reopened in 2021, and her lively drawings capture a spirited sense of character in the case of Nina, as well as the people she encounters along the way.”