What Does Grief Feel Like? - Korie Leigh - ★★★.½

AUTHOR: Korie Leigh

ILLUSTRATOR: Mike Malbrough

GENRE: Children's Nonfiction, Picture Book

PUBLICATION DATE: April 4, 2023

RATING: 3.5 stars.

In a Nutshell: A picture book exploring the concept of grief and what can be done in its shadow. A good way of getting kids to understand and handle their complicated feelings during times of loss. Interactive questions to help the process. A little repetitive, though this aspect might be helpful as well. Great information for adult caregivers at the end.

“Someone I love died.”

An apt start for a children’s book on grief.

By not naming the “someone”, the book allows itself to be open to any kind of personal loss. It even clarifies how grief is a natural response in the face of a loved one’s death but it can also be felt in other situations.

The information provided on tackling grief is simple yet effective for little ones. It explains what might feel changed in their mind as well as their body. For every point it makes, it also asks a related question to the reader. Explaining what grief feels like isn't easy even for adults, so the questions are a wonderful way of understanding what their little one is truly feeling.

I like how the book highlights not just the methods to deal with grief but also the importance of reading your mood. Not everyone grieves the same way, and even within an individual experience, not every moment of grief is the same. Allowing for the variations is the right first step towards healing. It’s good that the book also includes negative emotions such as anger and frustration that are so common during grief. Kids (and adults) need to understand that grieving isn't just crying.

The content becomes a little repetitive at times. I guess repetition does help to reiterate the point in young minds. However, it also makes the flow seem unstructured to a great extent.

The book also covers how family and community can help during grief. This could possibly go either way as not all children are blessed with a supportive family or an active community. I hope children who are relatively alone don’t feel further isolated on reading about the importance of family during such times.

The book ends with a detailed guide for adult caregivers on how to support children through grief, an age-wise chart of common behaviour during grief, techniques to handle grief, and most importantly, children’s grief resources online.

The illustrations are appropriate to the content in both colour as well as tone. The child’s grief is palpable on every page, but there are also several moments of beauty.

Overall, while we always hope that children don’t have to face grief, it is a fact of life that can strike anytime. Such books can be really handy when children struggle to express what they are going through during such unfamiliar experiences.

Recommended to any family/counsellor where children need help after a personal loss. The book ought to work well for children aged 4-9.

3.5 stars, rounding up wherever applicable for the intent.

My thanks to Free Spirit Publishing for providing the DRC of “What Does Grief Feel Like?” via NetGalley. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.