[LM_NET] HIT: Books on death, grief, and bereavement for children PART 4

[Brian Kemp <librianstlouis@GMAIL.COM>]

This is Part 4 of this HIT.

Brian Kemp, MSIS
Librarian
St. Louis Catholic School
Austin, TX

*       Steiner, Jorg. Illus. by Jorg Muller. Rabbit Island. (Harcourt,

1978)

*       Tejima, Keizaburo. Swan Sky. (Philomel, 1988)

*       Temes, Roberta. The Empty Place: A Child's Guide Through Grief.

"A boy describes the feelings of loss, fear and guilt felt by himself

and his friend Betsy after each of them experiences the loss of a

sibling." -- from a booklist at the Allen County Public Library, Fort

Wayne, Indiana.

*       Thomas, Jane Resh. Illus. by Marcia Sewell. Saying Goodbye to

Grandma. (Ticknor, 1988)

*       Turner, Barbara J. A Little Bit of Rob. (Whitman) "After Rob's

death, his parents and younger sister finally take their boat out

crabbing again in an effort to get their lives back to normal." -- from

a booklist at the Allen County Public Library, Fort Wayne, Indiana.

"good for a child"

*       Twonsend, Maryann, and Ronnie Stern. Pop's Secret. (Harper,

1980)

*       Varley. Susan. Badger's Parting Gifts. (Lothrop, 1984) " is a

gentle tale for small children about coping with death of a grandparent

(or grandfather type figure)"



And:



Gr 1-6. All the woodland creatures love old Badger, and when he dies,

they are overwhelmed by their loss. "An ageless story of death, love,

and comfort." (Rocky Mountain News)



*       Velthuijs, Max. Frog and the Birdsong. "After carefully burying

a dead blackbird, Frog and his friends realize that though life ends it

is still wonderful to be alive." -- from a booklist at the Allen County

Public Library, Fort Wayne, Indiana.

*       Vigna, Judith. Saying Goodbye to Daddy. "Frightened, lonely, and

angry after her father is killed in a car accident, Clare is helped

through the grieving process by her mother and grandfather"-- from a

booklist at the Allen County Public Library, Fort Wayne, Indiana.

*       Viorst, Judith. Illus. by Erik Blegvad. Tenth Good Thing about

Barney. (Atheneum, l971, l975, 1998) "about the death of a pet but also

about remembering loved ones who've died." "for young children" " In an

attempt to overcome his grief, a boy tries to think of the ten best

things about his dead cat."-- from a booklist at the Allen County Public

Library, Fort Wayne, Indiana.



And:



Gr 2 Up. "In simple phrases narrated by a child whose cat, Barney, has

just died, the author succinctly and honestly handles both the emotions

stemming from the loss of a beloved pet and the quesions about the

finality of death which naturally arise ... an unusually good book."

(The Horn Book)



*       Wallace-Brodeur, Ruth. Goodbye, Mitch. "A young boy describes

how he feels when the family cat dies." -- from a booklist at the Allen

County Public Library, Fort Wayne, Indiana

*       Weitzman, Elizabeth. Let's Talk About When a Parent Dies.

"Provides advice on surviving the death of a parent and suggests what

feelings and behavior to expect from others." -- from a booklist at the

Allen County Public Library, Fort Wayne, Indiana

*       Wild, Margaret. Illustrated by Ron Brooks. Old Pig. (Dial, 1996)



*       Wild, Margaret. Toby. "When Toby the dog gets old and sick and

finally dies, the children who love him express their love in different

ways." -- from a booklist at the Allen County Public Library, Fort

Wayne, Indiana

*       Wild, Margaret. Illustrated by: Vivas, Julie. Very Best of

Friends (1990). ALAN 1991 "After the death of his beloved owner, a cat

named William wins the heart of his grieving mistress and shows her what

a good friend a cat can be. (P)"

*       Wittman, Sally. A Special Trade. (Harper and Row, 1978)

*       Zalben, Jane Breskin. Pearl's Marigolds for Grandpa. "A young

lamb copes with the death of her grandfather by remembering all the

things she loved about him. Includes information about funeral customs

of various religions." -- from a booklist at the Allen County Public

Library, Fort Wayne, Indiana.

*       Zolotow, Charlotte. My Grandson Lew. (Harper and Row, 1972,

1974, 1985)

*       Zolotow, Charlotte. Illus. by James Ransom. The Old Dog.

(Harpercrest, Revised Edition 1995) "gentle book about the death of

pets"


________________________________________

Adult Fiction

Ordinary People, Guest, Judith (0-140-06517-2, $7.95)

Gr 6 (mature) Up.



Junior Fiction

Begonia for Miss Appelbaum, A., Zindel, Paul (O-553-28765-6, $3.99) Gr

4-7. When Henry and

Zelda discover their favorite teacher hasn't very long to live, they

become her Saturday companions. (Amazon synopsis)



Bravest Thing, The, Napoli, Donna Jo (0-140- 37973-8, $3.99)

Gr 4-6. When her pet rabbit's newborn babies die, her doctor tells her

that she may have scoliosis, and her aunt is diagnosed with cancer,

10-year-old Laurel feels reminded of the mortality of all living things.

(Amazon synopsis)



Bridge to Terabithia, Paterson, Katherine (0- 06-440184-7, $4.50)

Gr 4 Up. The life of a 10-year-old boy in rural Virginia expands when he

becomes friends with a newcomer who subsequently meets an untimely death

trying to reach their hideaway. (Amazon synopsis) (Newbery Medal, 1988?)



Cay, The, Taylor, Theodore (0-380-01003-8, $4.50)

Gr 4 Up. Blinded by a blow to his head when his ship is torpedoed by

Germans, Phillip finds himself shipwrecked with Timothy, an old, black

West Indian sailor. "Innocence vs. wisdom, black vs. white, growing up

and surviving ... forcefully portrayed." (LJ)



Death. Bryant-Mole, Karen. (Wayland, 1992) "a more direct, factual book

for rather older

children. A somewhat quirkier book - but ideal for those children who

would find it easier to deal with death in terms of the whole life cycle

rather than on its own is.



Earthshine, Nelson, Theresa (O-440-21989-2, $4.50)



Ellen Anders on Her Own, Hirsch, Karen (0-027- 43975-5, $15.00)

Gr 3-7. A book acknowledging that, for a sixth grader coping with

bereavement, grieving is as much about changing relationships as it is

about healing. Months after her mother dies in a car crash, blond, smart

Ellen finds the diary she kept at age 12 and discovers her mother sounds

like a '60s version of the sort of person she and her friends look down

upon ... her father offers insights without providing solutions ... lean

low- key writing.



The Foundling Carrick, Carol. Illus. by Donald Carrick. (Houghton, 1983)



Freak the Mighty, Philbrick, Rodman (0-590- 47413-8, $3.99)

Gr 4-9. "An extraordinary friendship between a brilliant 12- year-old

midget, Kevin (called "Freak") and gigantic Max, who have much to give

each other. Max's description of their friendship, ostensibly written

after Freak's death, is gritty, unsentimental, sparked with Freak's wry

wit and Max's earthier humor ... Easily read but compelling." (Kirkus)

"The one book in the world I think every single human being should

read." ([young?] reader review)



The Happy Funeral. Bunting, Eve. Illus. by Mai Vo-Dinh. (Harper, 1982)

Last Dance, Moore, Miriam Ann (0-380-79118-8, $5.99)

Gr 5 Up. In the era of disco, Marti Hirsch is just another would-be

writer looking for a break, until someone fatally shoots her friend's

fiancee. Marti turns sleuth. Her search takes her throughout the Bad

Apple--from chic penthouses to dingy dives, and she soon has to worry

about "staying alive, staying alive."



Missing May, Rylant, Cynthia (0-440-40865-2, $4.50)

Gr 5 Up. A gifted writer returns to one of her favorite themes--love--in

this case, as it can inform and transform grief. After her mother's

death, Summer is taken in my her Uncle Ob and Aunt May ... six years

later, May has died ... Ob's mounting depression ... reveals a great

deal about her characters ... a beautifully written, life-affirming

book. (Kirkus)



Music from a Place Called Half Moon, Oughton, Jerry (O-440-21999-X,

$3.99)

Gr 5 Up. Edie Jo's small town is bitterly divided over the issue of

letting the town's minority Indian population send their children to the

vacation bible school ... Even Edie Jo is divided. On the other hand,

she falls in love with a charismatic older boy named Cherokee Fish ...

powerful, passionate, and deeply moving novel. (Kirkus)



Night Kites, Kerr, M.E. (0-06-447035-0, $4.50)

Gr 5 Up. 17-year-old Erick's comfortable and well-ordered life begins to

fall apart when he is forced to keep two secrets: the identity of his

new girlfriend and the nature of his brother's debilitating disease

(AIDS). (Amazon synopsis)



Running Loose, Crutcher, Chris (O-440-97570-0, $4.50)

Gr 5-12. Louis Banks, a high school senior in a small Idaho town, learns

about sportsmanship, love, and death as he matures into manhood. (Amazon

synopsis)



Stone Water, Gilbert, Barbara Snow (1-886- 91011-1, $15.95)

Gr 5 Up. "A 14-year-old is faced with the hardest decision of his life.

His grandfather suffers a stroke and asks Grant to help him die ... when

the crisis comes and Grant makes his agonized choice, his grandfather

regains consciousness long enough to hold the drugged cup himself: it's

not absolution, but mercy, and a fitting resolution to a compassionate

story ... a rich, absorbing story of believable situations and

intelligent characters. No reader will remain unmoved." (Kirkus)



Sudden Silence, A, Bunting, Eve (0-449-70362-2, $4.50)

Gr 4-8. Jesse Harmon know she will never forget the night his brother,

Bry, was killed by a hit-and-run driver. Striving to ease his grief,

Jesse and Bry's girlfriend begin a search for the driver--and uncover

other truths just as difficult and disturbing. (Amazon synopsis)



Summer to Die, A, Lowry, Lois (O-440-21917-5, $4.50)

Gr 4-6. 13-year-old Meg envies her sister's beauty. Her feelings don't

make it any easier for her to cope with Molly's strange illness and

eventual death. "It flowed very well, and the story was written very

smoothly ... it was not really very sad, but was more scary. I would

freak out if I woke up and my sister was [deleted for purposes of

suspense]" (6th grade Reader review)



Taste of Blackberries, A, Smith, Doris Buchanan (0-690-80512-8, $13.89)

Gr 4-7. No one, least of all his best friend, dreamed that Jamie's

exuberance and a harmless prank could end in his sudden death. But when

it does, his friend must find the strength to bear his grief and his

feeling that he might have saved his friend. (ALA Notable Children's

Book)



Tiger Eyes, Blume, Judy (O-440-98469-6, $4.99)

Gr 4-8. "After the murder of her father in his Atlantic City store,

15-year-old Davey Wexler, her mother, and younger brother go to stay in

New Mexico ... The plot is strong, interesting, and believable. The

story, though intense and complicated, flows smoothly and easily. Blume

has come of age." (VOYA) (ALA Best Book for Young Adults; NYT

Outstanding Children's Books of the Year)



Walk Two Moons, Creech, Sharon (0-330-33000-4, $6.99)

Gr 5 Up. 13-year-old Salamanca's mother has disappeared. While tracing

her steps with her grandparents on a car trip, Sal tells a parallel

story of a friend whose mother also disappeared ... fashions characters

with humor and sensitivity ... would have been stronger without quite so

many remarkable coincidences. (Kirkus) (Newbery Medal 1995)

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