Do you know any child who is trying to understand when his or her mom is seriously ill? Today I am sharing a book about a child dealing with her mom having cancer. The book is Brave Like Mom by Monica Acker and illustrated by Paran Kim. It is recommended for ages 4 to 8.
From the Publisher:
As one girl watches her mom battle illness, she sees Mom being strong, brave, and fierce on both good days and bad ones. Mom is fierce as she catches and wrestles a fish and brave as she endures needles from the doctor. The girl wants to be brave like Mom! As she worries about her mom's health, the girl realizes that bravery comes in many forms and that she can be brave too.A poignant and sensitive story about a loved one living with a chronic illness, and an important lesson about how being brave doesn't mean you aren't scared.
From Me:
It can be scary watching a loved one fight a serious disease. It is even more scary when the person is your mom. This book shares a fictional story about a girl watching her mom who is fighting a serious disease. It shares how she views her mom as brave, strong, and fierce. The girl wants to be these things like her mom but is sad, scared and cries. Her mom helps teach her that being strong doesn't mean you can't cry, being brave doesn't mean you aren't scared and being fierce is pushing through hard times in hope of better stuff to come. There are so many important messages in this book for kids to get through a very tough time.
There are many things I love about this book. Mom is the one to help with the spiders as well as reel in the big fish. She wears her superhero cape which we call a bathrobe as she is resting and fighting each day. At the end of the book the author shares that the story is fiction but is based on her family's story of her sister-in-law and her battle with cancer. She shares that she wrote the book for her and is sharing it to help others who are fighting cancer or who love someone who is. I hope you will check out this book and I hope it will give someone some peace and hope.
