Michael Rosen's Sad Book

This week marks the third anniversary of my little sister's suicide. I don't want to write about that, but it does give me a particular reason to share this book with you.

Michael Rosen's Sad Book is, like much of his work, simply written. I don't mean simple as in dumbed down, simplified, it's rather that he doesn't pad out the truth or fluff it up with weasely words. He tells it straight, and it's devastating.

Quentin Blake's illustrations are just stunning in this. If, like me, you think of him as sketching playful, colourful, anarchic happy kids, this will make you see his work in a new light.

I bought it when I was suffering from depression, and it helped. Then I read it again when I was grieving, and it helped some more.

It would be a good book for helping children understand their feelings, showing them different ways sadness can affect them and how they might deal with it; showing them they're not alone, though it might feel like it sometimes. It works pretty well for this adult too.

And the last page will make you cry (if the rest hasn't). But crying isn't always a bad thing.

http://www.michaelrosen.co.uk/