Gentle Willow: A Story for Children About Dying

Rating:
Summary: "Gentle Willow" is a truly gentle story of life and death.
Review: A lot of childrens' books about death are either specific to one religion, or not spiritual at all. This book is a nice bridge between the two extremes. It alludes to the metamorphosis of caterpillar into butterfly, and it describes death as change of form rather than an ending. It also talks about how the living can comfort the dying and how the we cherish memories of them after death. All of this is brought up very tenderly, in the context of a squirrel whose friend, a tree, is dying. The book even touches on the emotions of anger and fear, without dwelling too much on negatives.

Rating:
Summary: Tender and gentle way to help children cope with death.
Review: I read this book to my 9 year old daughter when we found out her cancer was terminal. It helped her and her friends deal better with her impending death. I highly recommend this book to people who are dealing with children and death.

Rating:
Summary: Helping children deal with the pain of a terminal illness
Review: When I first read "Gentle Willow: A Story for Children About Dying," I thought it was about preparing a child for the death of a terminally ill loved one. After all, the story tells about Amanda, a squirrel, and her friends Little Tree and Gentle Willow. One day Amanda notices that Gentle Willow looks and feels differently. Amanda becomes concerned about her friend and calls in Fixumup and Imageen the tree wizards, who check Gentle Willow and have to admit that while they can make her feel more comfortable and help her feel stronger, they cannot make her all better. The tree wizards comfort Amanda about the impending loss of her friend by explaining about the special gifts called memories.

When I finished reading this book I turned to the introduction and learned "Gentle Willow" was written for children who may not survive their illness as well as for the children who know them. I have to admit, I thought this sensitive book would also help children prepare for the death of a grandparent, or someone of any age. The basic metaphor of the caterpillars turning into butterflies applies any loved one. Dr. Mills developed this book out of an earlier effort, "Little Tree: A Story for Children with Serious Medical Problems," which reflects her specialty in storytelling as a healing process of children and adults. Obviously, this book will touch adults as well as the children for whom it was intended. The watercolor illustrations by Michael Chesworth captures the shifting tones of this tale, especially through the subtle changes on the face of Amanda, as sadness is replaced by hope through the healing power of love.

I wish your children will never have a need for such a book, but if the situation arises, I hope that you find this book.

Rating:
Summary: Helping children deal with the pain of a terminal illness
Review: When I first read "Gentle Willow: A Story for Children About Dying," I thought it was about preparing a child for the death of a terminally ill loved one. After all, the story tells about Amanda, a squirrel, and her friends Little Tree and Gentle Willow. One day Amanda notices that Gentle Willow looks and feels differently. Amanda becomes concerned about her friend and calls in Fixumup and Imageen the tree wizards, who check Gentle Willow and have to admit that while they can make her feel more comfortable and help her feel stronger, they cannot make her all better. The tree wizards comfort Amanda about the impending loss of her friend by explaining about the special gifts called memories.

When I finished reading this book I turned to the introduction and learned "Gentle Willow" was written for children who may not survive their illness as well as for the children who know them. I have to admit, I thought this sensitive book would also help children prepare for the death of a grandparent, or someone of any age. The basic metaphor of the caterpillars turning into butterflies applies any loved one. Dr. Mills developed this book out of an earlier effort, "Little Tree: A Story for Children with Serious Medical Problems," which reflects her specialty in storytelling as a healing process of children and adults. Obviously, this book will touch adults as well as the children for whom it was intended. The watercolor illustrations by Michael Chesworth captures the shifting tones of this tale, especially through the subtle changes on the face of Amanda, as sadness is replaced by hope through the healing power of love.

I wish your children will never have a need for such a book, but if the situation arises, I hope that you find this book.