Worry, Loss, and Grief: Picture Book Power to Comfort

 Covid 19 and Black Lives Matter- Anchor in time:

We are living in the stressful time for school age (through college) kids facing the greatly magnified anxiety of a back-to-school season unlike any other. Recent tragic losses in the news include more incomprehensible shootings in Kenosha and Portland, as well as the heartbreaking news that actor/creator Chadwick Boseman died of colon cancer. His iconic portrayals of Black heroes, in biopics (Jackie Robinson- 42, Thurgood Marshall- MARSHALL) and in fantasy (BLACK PANTHER) provided all audiences with positive and powerful screen images of Black men that have rarely been seen. Apart from the sad ending to his remarkable talent, I know of children who have grieved his death as if a family member has died.

Picture books are powerful in their ability to put the reader/audience in control of the narrative, providing the ability to move forward and back through story and images, to pause and return to the books over time. Individuals can immerse themselves in stories that are not their own, but feel as if they are. As such, they are able to develop empathy for the intense emotions revealed, and also draw reassurance from the resolutions that are possible as the pages continue to turn.

Two picture books that feel very timely include one that will release in coming weeks, and one that has been available for two decades. 

Kane Miller Books, September, 2020

Let's begin by considering THE PERFECT SHELTER, written by Clare Helen Welsh and illustrated by Asa Gilland. The pages open with loving and uplifting text and images of a diverse family, including two sisters and their parents enjoying a day outdoors. The only suggestion of impending trouble is the short first line:

"At first, nobody knew."

These two lighthearted sisters join forces and use natural materials to create a shelter, one that any kid would love to inhabit. Despite her enthusiasm, the older sister needs to take rests, and the puzzled younger sister feels confusion and senses a pending problem. 

The repetitive language patterns and  rebuilding after storms allows the younger sister's first person voice to sustain a hopeful tone. Then, quite quickly, the older sister sees a doctor and has surgery. The narrator ignores the often-stated "show-don't-tell" advice for writers when she admits to her feelings. 

"I was too worried." 

"In the hospital I felt cross, and sad, and frightened, 

all at the same time."

In this case the choice feels exactly right. The rapid and serious plot developments, the jumble of emotions, the evocative and expressive art all open the heart to those times when the world overwhelms any singular neat response. The pace at which sister returns home, begins to recover, and resumes their shelter-building in bed restores hope and comfort. Even though an adult will recognize the reality and implications in early days of the older sister's medical journey, this invites a celebration of hope and realization that living in-the-moment is one of the greatest joys available to us all. 

Original 1999, Clarion, 2004

If anyone has a knack for storytelling with deep emotion it is surely author Eve Bunting, Just check out the amazing titles she has produced on this summary page, HERE. 

In RUDI'S POND, illustrated by Ronald Himler, readers meet Rudi as a friend, neighbor, and classmate of the first-person narrator. In the early pages we experience the joy and creativity of their friendship, of their shared love of nature, and of the girl's uncertain awareness that Rudi is not as strong or well as she is. 

Soon, as soon as we have shared the narrator's love of her friend, Rudi goes to the hospital, too. In this case, his stay is long, and he dies there. The child fully experiences the grief and loss, wrapped in the support and love of her parents. When given an opportunity to create a remembrance at school, she recalls their shared times at a pond. She and classmates incorporate other nature elements, and she shares the hummingbird feeder Rudi had helped create. 

The comfort derived from shared memories, passing of time, and the possibilities related to the returning hummingbird offer the perspective of the very young and and of a very old soul. 

Both books indicate the stories arose from personal experiences, and they both wrap readers in the assurance and comfort that loved ones can be relied upon to strengthen us through loss. Neither shies away from the depth of emotions that worry and illness and loss bring to lives, but both instill strength and resilience. Children often fear a trip to the hospital, for themselves. A PERFECT SHELTER will offer reassurance, and RUDI'S POND may be helpful to children when illness results in death. 

Sadly, the reality of death is pervasive in daily life, especially now, and even for young children. Using picture books BEFORE, DURING, and AFTER personal experiences with grief can prepare and fortify children for the emotional turmoil they will certainly encounter. Some prior posts about picture books involving death can be found HERE, HERE, HERE, HERE, and  HERE. 

I urge adults to immerse kids (of every age) in picture books, now more than ever. Books dealing with joy, grief, humor, science, nature... with EVERY-THING! I don't believe I am alone when I say that 2020 has reduced attention spans (including mine), riled up and confused emotions (including mine), and presented  us with never-ending waves of news and challenges that feel unimaginable to handle on our own. 

And yet they are real. 

Let picture books help. They can provide relief, escape, connection, and every other human exploration in the best possible, most controllable ways possible- in our own laps.

History Repeats; Picture Books Heal- SMOKY NIGHT

As events unfolded in Baltimore recently, I ached at the thought of history repeating itself in an endless loop. 

No, I don't mean a loop of other urban unrest in recent months.

I mean the loop of urban uprisings (and rural hate crimes, and generational injustices) dating back to the 1990's, and before that to the 1960's and 70's. And long before that.

Sadly, I've included these lyrics (from the Rogers and Hammerstein musical, SOUTH PACIFIC, 1949) in prior posts and they remain painfully current and true:

April, 1999, Caldecott Medal

"You've got to be taught

To hate and FEAR

You've got to be taught from year to year

It's got to be drummed in your dear little ear

You've got to be carefully taught.

You've got to be taught

To be AFRAID
Of people whose eyes are oddly made

And people whose skin is a different shade

You've got to be carefully taught.

You've got to be taught

Before it's too late

Before you are 6 or 7 or 8 

To hate all the people 

your relatives hate

You've got to be carefully taught."

And yet children of any age, including those in wrinkled bodies, can learn positive lessons, as well. Picture books of the highest quality, like Caldecott Medal-winning SMOKY NIGHT, written by EVE BUNTING and illustrated by DAVID DIAZ, allow us to explore the most horrific and painful issues. 

The "one degree of separation" from an immediate experience offers an opportunity to consider every point-of-view, each terrifying detail, and several heartfelt reactions using a healthy blend of reason and emotion. 

 I urge you to take a moment, actually less than two minutes, to view this YouTube statement by the author regarding the use of this book with children. (Click Here for video)

For an extensive resource (teaching guides, audio clips, and other useful tools) check out this link to teaching books.net. 

Above all, read this amazing book, and share it with anyone, of any age, who is concerned about social upheaval, of any size.

When adults feel helpless and hopeless, what are we teaching the children? Sharing tragic truths can and should include sharing positive models for reshaping our personal spaces. And, ultimately, the world.

Please help spread the word  about this book.

For  a well-organized resource of high quality picture books that address and heal other painful situations, I recommend this  blog:

Books That Heal Kids, hosted by Roxanne. Click here.

Thanksgiving and Hannukkah Converge

This year Thanksgiving and Hannukkah together to make Thanksgivukkah. Rarely does Thanksgiving fall this late on the calendar, nor does Hannukkah come as early. In this case, though, as rare as it is, digital communication has landed this new word in Wikipedia, on Facebook, Pinterest, YouTube,  and it even has a hashtag on Twitter (#Thanksgivakkah). 

What I couldn't find, even in these times of instantaneous publishing, was a picture book about it. You'd think that when two such important celebrations converge every 150 years it would merit a picture book of its own, wouldn't you?

Instead, I'll feature a few titles about the more conventional annual event, spelled in a variety of ways:
Chanukah, Hanukkah, Hanukah, Hannukah, Channukah, and at least ten others.

Blue Apple Books, 2008

HANUKKAH HAIKU, written by Harriet Ziefert and illustrated by Karla Gudeon provides an ideal starting point. It's vibrant colors and traditional images in figures, symbols, and border trims combine with simple and descriptive haikus to describe and celebrate the story of Hanukkah. The successively cut-page design is dramatic and gorgeous, concluding with a look resembling an heirloom quilt or tapestry. Back matter offers the explanation of the blessing said at the lighting of the candles each day. This book offers something for everyone, regardless of ethnicity or age.

Harper Collins, 2004

A more sober but uplifting title is by the prolific and incomparable Eve Bunting: ONE CANDLE, illustrated by K. Wendy Popp. The muted, sepia-toned illustrations are as powerful as the text in revealing one family's tradition of using the first night to retell the story of Great-Aunt Rose's Hanukkah as a thirteen-year-old girl in a concentration camp. "It has to do with being strong in the bad time and remembering it in the good time. And for the women in Grandma's barracks and others who didn't live to come out." This, too, captures the true meaning of Hanukkah.

Harper Collins, 1995

Then there's THE TIE MAN'S MIRACLE: A CHANUKAH TALE, written by Steven Schnur and illustrated by Stephen T. Johnson. It's out of print now but available in libraries and online. This is actually a somber story, perhaps for older readers. It, too, sees the candles through the eyes of a holocaust survivor. Despite having a more vague description than ONE CANDLE, its tone is darker and conveys more fully the horror of those events. The miracle, though, is the ability of the survivor to hold out hopes that wishes can come true, that young children can believe in better things.

For even more suggestions check this November 16 Nerdy Bookclub blog post by Stacey Shubitz : Top Ten Chanukah Books.

Chronicle Books, 2013

Then, whether yours will be a traditional Thanksgiving or a blended Thanksgivakkah, you'd do well to have on hand GIVING THANKS: POEMS, PRAYERS, and PRAISE SONGS OF THANKSGIVING.  Edited with reflections by Katherine Paterson and illustrations by Pamela Dalton, this collection draws on sources from ancient to current, from cultures as diverse as native American, Celtic, Vietnamese, and the prolific "anonymous". The poems and thoughts reflect on shared meals, family, inner spirits, and community. The paper cut art is as complex and direct as the text, inviting careful examination and providing ample reasons to return again and again. (If you're a fan of papercut art/ illustrations, Pamela Dalton's name above for more incredible cut-paper art that you can imagine!)

Whether these titles, or holidays, or thoughts of mine matter to you or not, I thank you for reading them, and wish you and those you care for an opportunity to share your blessings and memories together in peace throughout the holiday season.

Unsung Women... and Titles

All across the blogosphere and print publications the celebration of Women’s History Month is well underway. Engaging posts feature important and worthy picture book titles about women who have made contributions to the course of history. Many of these are recent releases and attention allows these titles to find readers- and fans.

This week I’ll use some older titles to call attention to some unsung, often anonymous women and girls who helped to build this country. These heroines bore the many burdens of expansion and homesteading with strength and courage, but not without fear and suffering. Their names are unsung because the roles they played were so unremarkable, so typical, yet no less heroic.

Sketchy details about real women, sometimes family ancestors, are often the prototypes for historical fiction. Stories based on these family retellings and supported by extensive research generate wholly authentic tales that deserve to be told, offering admirable icons of everyday women.

Ann Turner’s DAKOTA DUGOUT uses only 126 words and Ronald Himler’s richly detailed line drawings to trace one such woman’s prairie years from the days of her soggy sodhouse, blizzard devastation, and searing crop destruction to her eventual life in a clean clapboard home in a thriving community. Each of Turner’s 126 words is precious, especially the final eight: “Sometimes the things we start with are best.”

Eve Bunting, a notable woman of history herself, brings us DANDELIONS, illustrated by Ronald Himler. In this case a young girl tells her version of the struggling, often miserable first year in a sod home on the prairie, desperately transplanting a stray dandelion on their roof. The only hint of time passing occurs on the final page with a view of sprawling dandelions.

These are terrific books to pair with the 2012 middle grade release, MAY B. by Caroline Starr Rose. At 225 pages, this, too, is a fairly easy read with few words per page. The story in verse relates not only preteen May B.’s life-or death challenges but also reveals that not all prairie wives withstood the stresses of soddy life.

In each case the simplicity of the words require the reader to engage deeply with ideas and the realities of a ruthless time in our history, weighing the costs and consequences, considering what their own choices might have been.

A humorous but equally revealing tale is APPLES TO OREGON: BEING THE (SLIGHTLY) TRUE NARRARIVE OF HOW A BRAVE PIONEER FATHER BROUGHT APPLES. PEACHES. PEARS. PLUMS. GRAPES, AND CHERRIES (AND CHILDREN) ACROSS THE PLAINS. Deborah Hopkinson’s text and Nancy Carpenter’s illustrations invite repeated readings , raise questions, and encourage further research. Young Delicious (yes, she was named for the apple) is no less courageous because of her age and stands proudly in the ranks of women who shaped America.

Among many other earlier titles, don’t miss THE PRAIRIE TRAIN, written by Antoine O’Flatharta, illustrated by Eric Rohmann. It’s a wild and rollicking view of the impact of railroads in the settlement of the west. Rail passage brought access to supplies, but it also provided the woman and child power needed to make homesteads into homes in that exhausting, demanding new world.

The comparative value of children, not to mention of boys versus girls, is depicted in TRAIN TO SOMEWHERE, also by Eve Bunting, illustrated (once again) by Ronald Himler. Based on true stories of children transported by train from east coast orphanages to stops along the route, they would line up at each station to be selected (or passed over) by locals as needed. Newspapers advertised their scheduled arrival and, quite naturally, able-bodied lads were the first to find homes. In fact, though, these often proved to be little more than unpaid slave markets.

One final reminder, here, of the series of picture books, illustrated by Wisconsin’s own Renee Graef, which introduces younger readers to Laura Ingalls Wilder. MY FIRST LITTLE HOUSE SERIES, including A LITTLE PRAIRIE HOUSE, reveals the humor and challenges of families moving to the outer edges of our land.



Speaking of word counts, I’ve far exceeded a reasonable number of words here, but the potential for titles, links, and tributes goes on and on. The collection sited above includes Caldecott illustrators, Newberry notables, and more starred reviews than you can shake a cornstalk at. So, just as we can search out the everyday heroic women of past and present, I urge you to read, share, and celebrate the books already on our library shelves.

***I hope you’ll also check the links to these authors and illustrators- notables one and all.