Watch Me Do Yoga is an oversized hardcover book featuring a little red-headed girl of perhaps 7 or 8 years old playfully demonstrating different yoga poses.  The girl (she unfortunately does not have a name) recruits each of her parents in turn to watch and sometimes to join in as she practices basic postures such as mountain, tree, and lion poses.  Other characters make an appearance as well, from the family dog to little brother Paul.  The illustrations are colorful yet uncomplicated, and the rhyming text is also both simple and clear–for example, “I like to stand on one leg–Pretending I’m a tree–and then I wave my arms about–Hey, Daddy, look at me!”

The only caution I would suggest about this book is with respect to the difficulty level of some of the postures depicted by the little girl.  Although most of the poses shown are beginner’s level and are likely to be quite accessible to the typically flexible school-aged child, author and illustrator Bobby Clennell also features her young yogini in a few more challenging postures–for example, backbends such as fish pose and upward bow or wheel pose.  These poses are probably best performed with adult supervision, and preferably with the assistance of an adult who has some knowledge of yoga or other relevant training.

Overall, Clennell has created a lovely little book for inspiring children to do yoga.  It is probably best suited for adults hoping to pass along a love a yoga to their children; this is an ideal book for parents and children both to read and to practice yoga together.

© 2010  Beth Cholette

Beth Cholette, Ph.D., is a clinical psychologist who provides psychotherapy to college students.