Just a Thunderstorm (Mercer Mayer's Little Critter (Paperback))

Rating:
Summary: Great for helping young children process fears
Review: Last night in the midst of a loud and scary storm my two-yearold kept asking me for something. It took me a few minutes tounderstand that she was saying, "Thunder book." So we went to our bookshelves in search of this book, which has been a favorite of hers since it first came into our home. (She also loves her little critter CDrom of "Just Grandma and Me") Last night I read the book three times and my husband read it twice, before my daughter said, "Thunder all gone" and was ready to move on to another book. This is the first time I've seen her use a book to process/normalize fears, and I think it's wonderful. Even though this is supposed to be for the 4-8 year old, all young children are fascinated by storms. The book doesn't minimize the scary aspects, but does give examples of ways of dealing with fear (reading a book, listening to a tape, climbing into bed with a brother) and talks about the positive aspects of thunderstorms (the adventure, roasting marshmallows in the fireplace when the lights go out, splashing in puddles the next day, and the fact that storms help flowers grow). My only complaint is that the children do end up sleeping in their parents room which is something we're currently trying to discourage. But I'm very grateful for this book.