The Purple Balloon

[library_mama]

Hopefully, no one but turnberryknkn will ever have need for this book….

The Purple Balloon by Chris Raschka This brief but powerful picture book by Caldecott winner Raschka aims to help terminally ill children. The introductory note explains that when children who know they are dying are in art therapy, they universally draw pictures of a blue or purple balloon floating away. In this book, all the people are pictured as different-colored balloons. First, it talks about how sad it is when old people die, as an old green balloon slowly turns purple and floats away. The only thing sadder is young people dying. Dying is hard work, the book says, but “good help makes dying less hard.” A small balloon surrounded by others also turns purple and floats away.

Comments

[arovd.livejournal.com]

what a great concept! i wonder if there's anything similar for general grief and loss (death of a significant person)

[sapphireone.livejournal.com]

There's a lot out there for loss of a grandparent. There's a fair number of books for older elementary or teen readers on losing parents, siblings, friends, or dealing with terminal illness. Now I've just been poking around the catalog - most of the picture books are about grandparents, with one or two on parents or teachers. There's some in the juvenile non-fiction section that look like they are about death more generally, but it's hard to say without looking at them what the age range would be. Then again, that's probably my own personal bias, knowing how hard it is to find books the right level for a toddler or preschooler. I'm sure it would be a lot easier to find for slightly older kids.

[arovd.livejournal.com]

folks probably figure toddlers or pre-schoolers couldn't grasp the concepts. they might not be able to express it so well, but they can grasp a lot more than most people think!

[turnberryknkn.livejournal.com]

I think I have seen this book before on the floor, although I've never actually picked it up. Thank you very much for the suggestion -- I will definately make a point of seeking it out. It does sound like a very good book. Especially where I'm hoping to earn the right to go.

Guerir quelquefois, soulager souvent, consoler toujours.

[sapphireone.livejournal.com]

It just came out this month, so if you've seen it on the floor, your folks are fast on the uptake! And I would have no doubt of your ability to go where you want to go.

Stuck on the translation: what is guerir? "Heal sometimes, relieve often, comfort always" - is that right?

[turnberryknkn.livejournal.com]

I must be mistaken, then, regarding seeing the book before. I'll *definately* keep an eye out.

And that's the translation, yes. :-)