Missing Mummy

Author: Rebecca Cobb

Publisher: Macmillan Books
Age range: 3 - 8 Years
Product dimensions: 8.60 (w) x 10.80 (h) x 0.40 (d)

Overview

Some time ago we said goodbye to Mummy. I am not sure where she has gone.

Written and illustrated by a new talent in children’s picture books, this extraordinary book deals with the loss of a parent from a child’s point of view. Perfectly pitched text and evocative artwork explore the many emotions a bereaved child may experience, from anger to guilt and from sadness to bewilderment. And importantly, the book also focuses on the positive – the recognition that the child is still part of a family, and that his memories of his mother are to be treasured.

Beautifully illustrated with moments of wonderful warmth and the gentlest humour, this is a touching, honest and helpful book that approaches a difficult subject with great integrity.

Editorial Review

A powerful combination of childlike drawings, rendered in watercolor and crayon, and minimal text provides an extraordinary look at the impact of his mother's death on a young boy. "Some time ago we said good-bye to Mommy. I am not sure where she has gone," he says. The boy looks for her behind the sofa, under the bed, and in the yard, but finds only her belongings. He experiences fear, worry that his misdeeds might have caused her to leave, and even anger: "The other children have THEIR moms. It's not fair." When the child wonders when Mommy is coming back, his father, tears streaming down his face, explains that "when someone has died they cannot come back…." Between the opening spread depicting rain-soaked mourners donned in black and holding black umbrellas at the graveside, and the final one showing the boy, still clutching his mom's sweater, but now shown in a flower-filled garden, readers see him, his father, and his sister gradually moving on with their lives. The tears still flow as they view old photos, and the boy still laments, "I really miss my mommy," but there are brighter moments of shared memories and household chores as well, and the boy's consoling conviction that just as he was special to his mom, "she will always be special to me." This honest treatment of death and loss can spark discussion and provide answers and comfort to young children who experience the loss of a loved one.