Umbrella Summer

Title: Umbrella Summer
Author: Lisa Graff
Age: 9-12
Rating: 4/5

Summary: Annie loves to ride her bike, and when she does she always makes sure to wear her helmet, and her elbow pads, her knee pads and her ankle braces. She used to like to have fast races with her best friend, but now they have turtle races. Annie is very cautious, because after her brother died unexpectedly a few months previously, you just never know what could happen.

Thoughts: I really enjoyed reading this. For such a heavy subject as grief, I was preparing myself for feeling low following my reading. But Annie is only 10 years old, and even though so much has happened and she helps to lighten the story by being 10 and trying to live her life as normally (albeit as safely) as she can.

I would recommend this for a child who is grieving, or worrying about their own death. While there is so absolute answer for these stresses there is a gentle reassurance throughout that it is okay to talk about death and grief, that in itself can help alleviate worry and sadness.