Gently and lovingly shows children the difficult concepts of death and grief through the animals in a garden. Wise words for adults, too. Beautiful, emotive illustrations. ( )

This is probably the best book about death and grief for kids that I've read. Simple and straightforward without any religious references. I wish the characters had names, though. That's my only complaint. Names would establish a more emotional connection than just a generic cat or bunny.
I loved the artwork, even though it is dark at times, and strangely suitable for the mood and theme of the book. The last illustration is so beautiful.
I read it with my daughter and we both thought about it for a long time. ( )

This is a beautiful book about grief, dealing with questions we all ask and wonder about a life after death. A beautiful fluffy cream colored cat and a fluffy white bunny live together in the garden. One day the cream cat becomes sick and dies. The bunny misses her very much. During sleep, the cat appeared to the bunny telling the bunny that everything that lived leaves their trace on the earth.

When the bunny awoke, the cat said "Dying is not a punishment. It does not mean anyone did anything wrong." When the bunny cries and tells the cat how much she is missed, the cat tells the bunny that missing is a way of keeping close to those we lost.

This is a simple message with beautiful illustrations of the bond that is never ending. ( )

grief, grieving, anthropomorphic, illustrated*****

What a wonderful and always timely book for all ages. Can be read anytime, but especially needed in times of personal grief. It is not directed toward any particular belief system but is a message of calm and love.
The illustrations are minimally abstract and with diverse but muted colors. Public libraries need a copy as well as households.
I requested and received a free temporary ebook copy from Penguin Random House Canada/Tundra Books via NetGalley. Thank you! ( )