Upcoming Picture Book - Ms. Swirly's Compliment Machine

Ms. Swirly's Compliment Machine by Jana Mattern (Author), Judit Orosz (Illustrator)

From the publisher, Marble Press, Published Sept 8, 2026.

When the Compliment Machine goes haywire, kids see firsthand how words can hurt or heal―and learn they have the power to choose to be kind. It’s a silly story with a serious heart that empowers children to use their voices for good.

Jett loves everything about Ms. Swirly’s wacky classroom―from alphabetics to the four-legged teaching assistant. Though above all, he loves the compliment machine. But he and the class love the compliment machine a little too much, and when a kerfuffle causes the machine to malfunction, it spouts off insults instead. The most shocking, ridiculous, silly insults―which can’t possibly be mentioned here! After all attempts to repair it fail, Jett must find a way to cheer up the class before they are doomed to be one big gaggle of grumps all year.

MS. SWIRLY’S COMPLIMENT MACHINE is a silly-but-sweet story about the power of a kind word. It empowers young readers to use their voice for good. The SEL component makes it a wonderful choice to read in the classroom, the library, or at home.

This is a really adorable story. Not preachy at all. The artwork is colorful, lively, and inclusive. The classroom activities are fun.

You see the kids’ camaraderie at the beginning of the story. Then you see how it gets lost when the machine malfunctions, and the consequences of taking your frustration out on something. And how the kids fix their compatibility and get the classroom balance back.

I love how Jett gets creative and becomes the compliment robot after it breaks. The kids rally for each other and realize they can do for themselves what the robot had been doing. Kindness is catching.