Explaining suicide and grief to a young child can be a daunting task. This book will help I'm sure. Rafi's Red Racing Car is a tale of a young rabbit who has lost a parent to suicide and the grieving process that follows. It is written from the point of view of the main character rather than directly focusing on the feelings and emotions of a grieving child himself. As we adults know, life isn't always fairytales and happy endings. We must be equipped to prepare our child for the the best and worst that life throws at us and the unthinkable events that can abruptly interrupt our lives leaving us shocked and asking "why?"
Unwrapping...
"Rafi's Red Racing Car"
Written and illustrated by Louise Moir
Ages 8 and under
Unwrapping some illustrations for you ...
About the book...
This tale is about a young rabbit who suddenly loses his father to suicide. His father always seems happy and fun-loving spending quality time with his son and then things start to change. The little fellow notices that daddy has changed: daddy stops playing racing cars with him, he stops playing with him at all and he stops going to work. Daddy looks dishevelled and forlorn and ... lost.
Mummy explains that Daddy has an illness inside his head :
Mummy explains that Daddy has an illness inside his head :
"It's making his thoughts and feelings get all muddled up and causing him to feel very sad and very worried."
"One day Rafi's daddy went out and didn't come back."
Rafi's daddy has committed suicide. The book goes on to explain the process of how Rafi (and his mummy) tries to understand what happened and try to put their lives back together after their beloved family member has gone on forever and will no longer be part of their lives.
Young children are very visual so the illustrations tell the story and provide an explanation of the confusion and pain Rafi is experiencing. He cannot sleep, his tummy aches, he has bursts of anger and he clings to his mummy never wanting her to go away from him too, just to mention a few. Can Rafi's world ever be the same again? Can his heart be mended?
Luckily Rafi has access to a councillor and a loving mom who wraps her arms around him and gives him the support and attention that this little guy needs daily to heal. As time moves forward so does their lives until...
"Everything was beginning to feel alright again."
The end of the book has a "Helping Children Heal" section which offers guidance to parents and professionals who are helping children who have experience a loss by suicide. I highly recommend this book. The title will be released on December 21, 2016.
About the author...
Louise Moir studied fine art at Cheltenham University before completing an MA in art psychotherapy at Hertfordshire University. She has worked as an art psychotherapist in child, adolescent and adult mental health services for the past fifteen years. She has also trained in EMDR, a form of psychotherapy that is typically used to treat post traumatic stress. Irreplaceable is Louise's first book. She now lives on the south coast with her two young sons.
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