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Sad (QED Everybody Feels series) ISBN: 9781845383893
Bingham, Jane and Turner, Helen
Published by Qed Publishing, 2006
When Sam breaks his birthday toy robot, he is sad. We learn how this feels - that we might want a hug or to be alone for a little while, and that is fine. The feeling won't last forever, and that is a good thing to know. We then read brief stories about two children who are sad for very different reasons. Omar has trouble at school; he is called names and no one will play with him, and he is sad and lonely. When Zack makes friends with him and they play football together, suddenly everyone wants to play, and Omar feels happy again. There is a subplot here as Omar has a dusky skin and so a racial element comes into the bullying. Amy's story is very different. She is given a pet rabbit, Archie, that she loves dearly. When he becomes ill and the vet can't help, Amy is very, very sad; she can't eat. Her mum helps her look at pictures and they share happy memories of Archie together, and soon she is 'laughing and crying at the same time'. It is her happy memories of Archie that will help her, and both children learn to be kind to others who are sad. The pictures are excellent - round-faced children showing expressions that are easily understood and with lots of background context. A good glossary, an index, and a page of notes for parents and teachers to use with the book, all make it useful for school as well as home.
Age: 5+