Book review of Good-Bye, Baby Max by Carole McDonnell (www.preschoolentertainment.com)

“Diane Cantrell, a former kindergarten teacher and a grief facilitator with degrees in education and counseling, has put much of her knowledge about grief into a sweetly illustrated book on dealing with grief.

The story begins in a season all kindergarteners are aware of. Spring. Children in Mrs B’s class are learning about growth and beginnings by planting seeds and hatching eggs. But then the unexpected happens and an emergency occurs. Baby Max, one of the hatchlings the children have been waiting to hatch, seems to be having trouble being born. Although his brother and sister, Dora and Spiderman, are as healthy as can be…his attempts to break through his shell are feeble. There is a rush to the veterinary hospital but unfortunately Mrs B returns the next day with the bad news: Baby Max did not survive. (Okay, some astute child might ask why Mrs B didn’t help Max out of the shell, but that is not likely to happen.)

Understandably, the children are upset. Their hearts were set on Max and although they hadn’t really seen him, they are grieving at the unexpected loss. Mrs B then arranges a grief ceremony which the children themselves create. Max is memorialized, buried, and with the help of Dora and Spiderman the children learn that life is still beautiful and life goes on.

First thing I’ll say is that this book is very multicultural. Children of all races appear in these wonderfully-illustrated pages. The second thing is that fortunately the trauma surrounding Max’s death comes fairly quickly. There isn’t a lingering buildup or a lingering drawn-out dying scene. The memorial also comes and goes fairly quickly. In fact, the book seems quite short –about twelve or so pages.

The rhyme is unobtrusive, unremarkable, and unnoticeable for adult standards. But kids will love it. And this is a book for kids. The words are common ones kids hear everyday….so kindergarteners will not struggle with terms and some first and second graders might be able to read it.

The drawings seem to be pastel crayons. I checked the information sheet to see what kind of media was used but am not quite sure. The emotion in the faces engages the reader and any child will easily understand it. Even the ladybugs weep for little Max.

The story is transferable to real life without being overly pushy and terrifying to children. Teachers could definitely use this book to discuss the arc of life and death should any of their students suffer a sudden emotional loss. I highly recommended this book for 3 to 7 year olds and for children in special education classes.”

Hilary Williamson (BookLoons.com)reviews Good-Bye, Baby Max

“It’s springtime in a busy kindergarten classroom, when Mrs. B., brings in a box - ‘The children are thrilled, / for soon they will greet / Three baby chicks, / so soft and so sweet.’ In advance of their hatching, the children name the small fluffballs Dora, Spiderman and Max.

One morning, the chicks start to hatch - Dora and Spiderman quickly emerge, but Max ‘pecks and pecks, / trying to crack open his shell’. The kids worry and Chris asks, ‘Is Max gonna die?’ The next morning, they sadly learn that Max didn’t make it (the blue tinge to the illustration emphasizes how the children feel about the news).

At Mrs. B,’s urging, they decide to ‘find a way to say good-bye.’ This wise teacher organizes an outdoor funeral for the little chick - the children sing and each takes their turn for a ‘last good-bye’. They craft memorial projects and watch Dora and Spiderman cheep and play, ‘Knowing that soon / they’ll have happier days.’

Diane Cantrell, who was a kindergarten teacher and is now a Licensed Professional Counselor, does a nice job of handling this delicate subject, while Heather Castles draws settings and children’s (happy and sad) faces beautifully. I recommend Good-bye, Baby Max as an excellent vehicle to communicate what the loss of a loved one means to little ones.”

MICHELE SIUDA JACQUES (Copy Editor, Detroit Free Press)

“Good-Bye, Baby Max by Diane Cantrell with illustrations by Heather Castles (Bridgeway Books, $16.95) is a tender story about death, a tough topic for young children. Kindergarteners eagerly await spring and the hatching of the class’ three chick eggs. But one chick, Max, dies. What ensues is a gentle exploration of grief and its many expressions — from tears to songs to artwork. At the end, the surviving chicks’ peeps encourage the children to embrace the living without forgetting the dead.”

I came across a kind review by S.V. Swamy in India, reviewing our book, Good-bye, Baby Max : “Good-bye, Baby Max is a beautifully written and equally (or more importantly) beautifully illustrated book for children in the suggested age group of 4 to 8 years. For the children in the younger part of this age group, the parents or elder children and other care givers can help in reading and also deal with the emotions that may arise…. The illustrations are beautiful and help to invoke the right feelings. The book tells children some important things about life: Life is a struggle and everyone doesn’t make it. It is OK to cry and mourn those who fail and fall down. But life is about accepting the loss and moving on and seeing the emergence of new life. The children can be encouraged to read, explore and analyze the emotions that well up….”

Diane & Rich Cantrell just passed this review by Ernest Dempsey onto me for our book, “Good-bye, Baby Max:”

“Many children books are printed each month to amuse kids of varying ages. This colorful, hardcover children’s title Good-bye, Baby Max (Bridgeway Books, Texas, 2007) by Diane Cantrell & Heather Castles is special in its purpose of teaching an invaluable lesson: that of properly saying the final farewell to a loved one who is no more. The book tells the story of the unfortunate baby chick Max who doesn’t make it into life while his twins Dora and Spiderman appear healthy out of their shells. The kids, eagerly awaiting the birth of the chicks, are heartbroken over the death of Baby Max and so their teacher uses her wisdom and care to lead them toward the appropriate way of showing their love and expressing their grief.

The importance of involving children in mourning is increasingly being acknowledged by developmental psychologists since children do sense the loss no matter how much they are coaxed into believing that ‘everything is ok.’ By being left out with the ‘mystery’, their wee minds are inclined to conclude that something terribly wrong has happened; something that is not worth speaking. This sows the seeds of fear and detachment in their mental development. Being a Licensed Professional Counselor and former KG teacher, Diane Cantrell has created a very purposeful book for children-one that is at once a story, a poem, and a healthy course of helping children get over grief. The book’s illustrations by Heather Castles are very appealing to a child’s imagination. There is a good deal here in Good-bye, Baby Max to learn for children ages 4 to 8 years and the 32-pages book is a must read for all kids of this age category.”

Aw, this really made my day… our book “Spotty & Eddie Learn to Compromise” just had a lovely review over at the Just One More Book podcast! I didn’t even realize my colleague, author Lisa M. Chalifoux, had sent a copy of our book to Mark & Andrea! Funny thing is, I’m still waiting to flip through a hard copy of the book myself… my copies arrive from Canada with my folks when they visit me in Australia for the birth of my first baby in 3 weeks. Anyway, enough rambling, you can click here to read the comments & listen to the podcast at Just One More Book!