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THE GOODBYE BOOK

Page history last edited by RichiesPicks 8 years, 9 months ago

30 June 2015 THE GOODBYE BOOK by Todd Parr, Little Brown/Megan Tingley Books, November 2015, 32p., ISBN: 978-0-316-40497-6

 

“There’s nothing you can hold for very long.”

-- from “Stella Blue,” sung by Jerry Garcia, who died twenty years ago this summer.

 

“It’s hard to say goodbye to someone.

You might not know what to feel.

You might be very sad.

You might be very mad.

You might not feel like talking to anyone.

You might just feel like hiding.”

 

Something really good happened recently. I immediately telephoned my sister to tell her the news. But I couldn’t telephone my brother. We lost him last year. I still feel very sad about that. It’s hard to say goodbye.

 

In THE GOODBYE BOOK, Todd Parr has created a noteworthy picture book for young children about saying goodbye to someone or something that is gone. Illustrated in his signature style, with bold colors and black borders, THE GOODBYE BOOK is told visually from the perspective of a fish in a bowl that has lost its fishy friend. We don’t really know if the other fish died or just moved to a new home but, to the grieving fish, its friend is gone.

 

We see coping mechanisms: “You might try to stop thinking about it. You might pretend it didn’t happen.” We see therapeutic tools: “You might feel like talking to someone. You might even feel like drawing a picture.”

 

Readers are assured that, in time, they will begin to feel better and will be able to remember the good times.

 

The reality is that loss changes one’s life. Things can get better, but they will never return exactly to what they had been. Nevertheless, as we learn from THE GOODBYE BOOK, we can remember the special times--for me, all those great Dead shows I attended, and the many comical things my brother was known to say--and we can connect with those in our lives and comfort one another with love and understanding.

 

This is a truly special and important book—a real must-have--for young children.

 

Richie Partington, MLIS

Richie's Pickshttp://richiespicks.pbworks.com

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