A Chicago author aims to help children battle stress and anxiety
In “Nona’s Nerves,” author Modello Brown inspires kids to overcome challenges and reach their full potential.
Many of us have likely experienced some form of anxiety, whether it’s before a job interview or when faced with a challenging problem. That anxiety can make you feel tense or even increase your heart rate.
A new book from a Chicago author aims to teach children how to successfully cope with feelings of fear and anxiety — and to let kids know it’s normal to feel nervous during stressful situations.
Nona’s Nerves, which was published last month, follows a little girl preparing to sing in a talent show. Despite her preparation, she becomes overwhelmed with anxiety when it’s her turn.
The titular character learns that many of her friends and classmates have had their own experiences with anxiety, and they let Nona know they’re there for her.
Author Modello Brown said he was inspired by his own experiences as a recording artist growing up in the Englewood neighborhood.
“In high school was when I did my first performance [at a] talent show and I froze,” he recently told WBEZ’s Reset. “I was so prepared hours before. Once I hit the stage and I got the whole student body in front of me, my anxiety shot up and it kind of made me also relapse back to, you know, growing up in those areas.”
He said he wrote Nona’s Nerves to help open a dialogue between kids and parents about a subject that might otherwise be difficult to tackle at a young age.
Nona’s Nerves is the second book in his Hip-Hop Littles series, which aims to entertain kids while giving children role models and encouraging them to be themselves.
Brown said many children feel they need to fit into a stereotype and may think the Black community is “only structured for basketball or music or having gangsta rap.”
“The younger age group is really where the anxiety starts, especially in the underprivileged people,” Brown said. “In order for them to have that comfortability to move forward and to actually, you know, not feel ashamed about being who they are … in our neighborhood it’s like, oh, well you can’t be anything unless you’re playing basketball, and that creates a complex for a lot of kids.”
Brown’s company, Hip Hop Littles, began as an idea for a clothing brand before evolving to also include children’s books and 3D animations to supplement the stories in his books. Along with writing, Brown co-illustrates his books.
The Hip Hop Littles clothing line came about after Brown created an animated version of himself for a song and put the character on various clothing items.
But Brown knew customers needed a reason to care about the characters on his products — so he created stories around them. His first book, Jordan’s First Day, was published in early 2023 and included many of the characters that would show up in Nona’s Nerves.
Brown wants kids who read his books to walk away feeling responsible “to push the conversation forward.”
“Treat people for who they are, not where they are,” he said. “And, you know, always understand that your story only gets better.”
Bianca Cseke is a digital producer at WBEZ. Sasha-Ann Simons is the host of WBEZ’s Reset. Meha Ahmad is the senior producer of WBEZ’s Reset. You can follow her on Twitter @Meha.
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Reset with Sasha-Ann Simons
A Chicago author aims to help children battle stress and anxiety
In “Nona’s Nerves,” author Modello Brown inspires kids to overcome challenges and reach their full potential.
Many of us have likely experienced some form of anxiety, whether it’s before a job interview or when faced with a challenging problem. That anxiety can make you feel tense or even increase your heart rate.
A new book from a Chicago author aims to teach children how to successfully cope with feelings of fear and anxiety — and to let kids know it’s normal to feel nervous during stressful situations.
Nona’s Nerves, which was published last month, follows a little girl preparing to sing in a talent show. Despite her preparation, she becomes overwhelmed with anxiety when it’s her turn.
The titular character learns that many of her friends and classmates have had their own experiences with anxiety, and they let Nona know they’re there for her.
Author Modello Brown said he was inspired by his own experiences as a recording artist growing up in the Englewood neighborhood.
“In high school was when I did my first performance [at a] talent show and I froze,” he recently told WBEZ’s Reset. “I was so prepared hours before. Once I hit the stage and I got the whole student body in front of me, my anxiety shot up and it kind of made me also relapse back to, you know, growing up in those areas.”
He said he wrote Nona’s Nerves to help open a dialogue between kids and parents about a subject that might otherwise be difficult to tackle at a young age.
Nona’s Nerves is the second book in his Hip-Hop Littles series, which aims to entertain kids while giving children role models and encouraging them to be themselves.
Brown said many children feel they need to fit into a stereotype and may think the Black community is “only structured for basketball or music or having gangsta rap.”
“The younger age group is really where the anxiety starts, especially in the underprivileged people,” Brown said. “In order for them to have that comfortability to move forward and to actually, you know, not feel ashamed about being who they are … in our neighborhood it’s like, oh, well you can’t be anything unless you’re playing basketball, and that creates a complex for a lot of kids.”
Brown’s company, Hip Hop Littles, began as an idea for a clothing brand before evolving to also include children’s books and 3D animations to supplement the stories in his books. Along with writing, Brown co-illustrates his books.
The Hip Hop Littles clothing line came about after Brown created an animated version of himself for a song and put the character on various clothing items.
But Brown knew customers needed a reason to care about the characters on his products — so he created stories around them. His first book, Jordan’s First Day, was published in early 2023 and included many of the characters that would show up in Nona’s Nerves.
Brown wants kids who read his books to walk away feeling responsible “to push the conversation forward.”
“Treat people for who they are, not where they are,” he said. “And, you know, always understand that your story only gets better.”
Bianca Cseke is a digital producer at WBEZ. Sasha-Ann Simons is the host of WBEZ’s Reset. Meha Ahmad is the senior producer of WBEZ’s Reset. You can follow her on Twitter @Meha.
More From
Reset with Sasha-Ann Simons