Navigating the tricky issue of parental separation/ divorce, this picture book is an invaluable resource for a child experiencing familial disruption. The text is simple yet poetic - ‘I am a snowflake in a snowstorm, spinning and twisting’ - anchoring the changes in the child’s life to the natural changes of the seasons, and with the very positive central message that although change is worrying, sometimes it is unavoidable, and happy times can still be found.
This lovely picture book follows a little mongoose as he crosses the plains of the Serengeti. With night falling, he makes his way back to his burrow while passing animals sleeping.
Welsh says that this book is based on her memory of a seaside outing to Perran Sands, Cornwall, as well as on her experience of having a family member who suffers from dementia. At the heart of the book is the beautiful relationship between a little girl and her grandfather. At times he gets confused and forgets things. The child narrator admits that she gets cross sometimes with him. She worries that someday he might forget her. Yet her empathy breaks through too, as she tries to imagine how frightening it must be for him to forget the people he loves.
