Teaching Emotional Intelligence and Resilience Through Storytelling

Children's imaginative rhyming books about big feelings, loss and grief, and bullying and self-love.

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NEW BOOK - Lulu and the Forest Troll

Introducing two heartwarming new characters, yellow Dizzy Waggle Lulu and the moody, mud cake making Forest Troll!

Together, they unravel the important topics of bullying and empathy in Lulu and the Forest Troll: an insightful tale about bullying and self-love, the third book in the Dizzy Waggle series.

When the musty and dusty Forest Troll causes chaos in the Dizzy Waggle town, using cruel words that match the anger he feels, Lulu is quick to teach him a lesson about inner happiness. 

But the lovable Dizzy Waggle picks up her own lesson along the way, learning about forgiveness and friendship.

Guiding young readers through emotions and resilience, this beautifully illustrated tale is a must-read for every child.

AVAILABLE NOW!

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Thea and the Dizzy Waggle

Purple Dizzy Waggle Brite makes friends with a tūī bird named Thea, who can often be heard singing from the blossoming pohutukawa tree. One day, Brite notices Thea isn't singing and learns the tūī is sick. When Thea tells Brite her body won't always be here, the Dizzy Waggle has important questions about death.

What did the tūī mean

about going away?

Aren’t those we love 

always meant to stay?

“But I’ll be sad if you leave me,” 

Brite said to the bird.

“I don’t want a world 

where your song isn’t heard.”

Thea and the Dizzy Waggle is a heartwarming and insightful tale about love, loss, and the magic of nature for anyone navigating grief.

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The Dizzy Waggle Who Lit the Dark

A 'feel-good' children's book about emotions and mental wellness. The Dizzy Waggle Who Lit the Dark teaches kids practical tools for resilience and emotional regulation.

Meet Zozo, the adorable Dizzy Waggle changing the way the world understands deep feeling kids!

Zozo is a Dizzy Waggle with a heart so big it can light the sky. When Zozo is happy, it glows bright like stardust. But when the fuzzy creature gets overwhelmed by big emotions like worry, anger, fear and sadness, life doesn't feel so easy.

When Zozo decides to hide away, it takes a dark storm to remind the glowing-hearted Dizzy Waggle that authenticity and empathy are powerful enough to change the world.

Join Zozo and the other Dizzy Waggles on a warm and uplifting journey that is bound to inspire.

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What professionals say

I love the fact you’ve created something that focuses on mental health and acknowledging emotions. We need to teach our children resilience at the earliest possible age, and this covers it beautifully. The illustrations and rhyming style gives it a nice warm flow and I liked the bit at the end, which encourages feedback and coaches some good strategies.

Martin Sloman, Counsellor. Queens Service Medal recipient for services to mental health

"Love Thea and the Dizzy Waggle. I've worked for over 20 years with children suffering from grief and loss and this is the best book I've come across as a resource in my work. Looking forward to what you write next."

Leonie Murch, Birthright New Zealand, regional leader

This book is so beautiful. Today I read it with two different aged children with completely different life journeys. They had different ideas about Zozo, but all positive.

They watched intensely for Zozo's sparkles and voiced their wonderings about the feelings that caused the sparkles to be dampened or in one picture, disappear.

Then, together we used Zozo's examples to explore their own emotions in more depth. E.g. if there was a snake or lava taking over their bodies in the moments they talked of, like in the book.

Thank you for being my favourite new tool to explore feelings with the children I work with.

Tash Love, Therapeutic Community Social Worker

The Author - Cloe Willetts

Cloe Willetts is an award-winning New Zealand journalist and children's creative writing teacher.

A born storyteller, the mum of one is fascinated by people and loves telling human interest stories most. She also enjoys poetry writing and helping children and adults to use literacy as a tool for self-expression.

Once a deep feeling child, like main character Zozo in her first book, Cloe often poured her heart into writing rhyme, using creativity and imagination as a way of finding her feet in the world.

After working in newspaper and magazine journalism roles, Cloe started her wellness focused storytelling and publishing business in 2020, EQ Storytelling.

A year later, she published the first edition of The Dizzy Waggle Who Lit the Dark under the company, which is a tale she wanted to tell for half her lifetime.

In early 2022, Cloe wrote and released Thea and the Dizzy Waggle, a sensitively shared story about loss and grief.

Her third book in the Dizzy Waggle series Lulu and the Forest Troll is about bullying and self-love and, like the other two tales, is based off a real-life encounter to help teach children emotional literacy and resilience.

The Illustrator - Fabienne Joni Sopacua

Fabienne Joni Sopacua is a Dutch detail-obsessed, self-taught artist who has split her time between New Zealand and the Netherlands. 

As founder of FJS-Art, Fabienne has built a loyal following and exhibited at New Zealand Art Trails and the New Zealand Art Show for six consecutive years, where she was named a finalist for the People's Choice award 2021.

Much of Fabienne's work is inspired by her deep love for animals and different cultures around the world.

She especially pays close attention to the eyes of her characters, trying to capture the soul of every human and creature she draws or paint.

This is evident in the captivating and emotive eyes of the Dizzy Waggle book characters, which Fabienne brought to life for all three tales.

Recently, the wife and mum of one expanded her creative toolbox by beginning a tattooing apprenticeship, which she juggles alongside commissions and being a children's illustrator.

Learn more about Fabienne's work over at FJS-Arts and Design.