When Children Grieve: For Adults to Help Children Deal ... (ISBN 0060084294)

Amazon.com Review:
It would be a pity if this interesting, humane, and practical book were read only by parents of recently bereaved children--for two reasons. First, the book is about grief in a broad sense. Its lessons apply not only to the child whose pet, aunt, or parent has died, but also to the child whose parents have divorced, who has suffered a debilitating injury, or who has experienced other forms of traumatic loss. Second, let's face it: every child will suffer a loss at some point, so it behooves parents to be prepared in advance. As the authors say, "our task as parents is to prepare our children to deal with the experiences they will have." It's unfortunate that the book has what might be considered a common structural flaw in self-help books. All of Part I (about 50 pages) is devoted to examining various myths about grieving and mistakes in dealing with it--for example, that the griever should keep busy and try not to feel bad. This is "good advice about bad advice," but it leaves the reader wondering why the authors didn't choose to get on with the plain old "good advice" on page 1. By Part II, it's already clear which coping techniques the authors will recommend. It would have been better to start there. --Richard Farr

Written With Gentle, Healing Hands:
I am a conservative, grumpy, old, Lutheran pastor, vehemently opposed to all things "New Age." I despise the fads of pop-psychology. "Touchy-Feely" advice from so-called experts, who demand exorbitant fees, often makes me want to wretch. So, I approached this book filled with trepidation. There was no need for my concerned. Writing with extraordinary gentleness and common sense Mr. James, Mr. Friedman and Dr. Matthews have provided adults with an invaluable outline on how to shepherd the children in their lives through loss, grief and recovery. Every parent, grandparent, teacher, pastor, priest, rabbi, nurse or physician who expects the children in their lives to suffer the death of a pet, suffer the death of a relative, move or endure a divorce will benefit from reading this book. Do yourself a favor. Read this book for the sake of the children whom you love. It is well worth the investment of your time. Then, do yourself a second favor, and place a copy of this book in your church, synagogue or public library for the others who will grow by reading it.

A Must Read for All Parents:
This book should be required for all parents. If you want to understand the basics of human and/or child behavior, this book is a must read. The book succinctly and lovingly explains the concept of "loss" and the emotional and physical responses to it-what we would normally call grief. The beauty of this book is that grief is placed in a larger context. In other words, according to the authors, grief is the response when experiencing a "massive change or end from everything familiar." Therefore, children, and adults, can grieve a variety of situations: loss of a pet, moving to another neighborhood, or changing schools. Therein rests the beauty of this book. This book explains how to help children. More importantly, the adults who are required to provide the assistance will learn more about their children and themselves. So highly recommended, there are not enough stars to express this book's importance.

A must read for any one going through a loss of any kind:
This is a great book for anyone who has been through a move, divorce, pet loss, or loss of a loved one. It gives great solutions for resolve. Even if it has been years since your loss. Even though the title implies it is to help your children you can learn alot about yourself as well.

Everyone needs this book!:
"When Children Grieve" is a book every person should read. It explains just how significantly we are impacted by almost evey loss we experience. Each and every one of us will experience loss in our lives. Most of us don't realize the impact those losses have on our future lives and the decisions we make when we have not gone through the grieving process. We need to ackowledge the changes that a loss brings to our lives. This book thoughfully explains what grieving is and how to recognize it in your life. I highly recommend it for everyone as a teaching resource for lifes lessons.

excellent book:
The book is readable, practical and filled with useful information. It would be helpful to both parents and professionals.