A Book About Death For Kids? (Vicky Angel - Jacqueline Wilson)

Member Name: shewhoguards

Product:	Vicky Angel - Jacqueline Wilson
Date:	03/05/08 (27 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Handles a hard subject sensitively

Disadvantages: Might be a bit much for some kids

Vicky Angel is a book that deals with death. That's not something I expect to see much in books targeted, as this is, at eight to eleven year old girls, especially not in books that aren't specifically marked for counselling or something.

The story centres around Jade, a little girl whose best friend is called Vicky. They're walking home from school one day, and Vicky is teasing Jade, and then there's a car and... well, I don't really need to draw you a picture, do I?

The rest of the book is about how Jade tries to deal with that. It handles it very well, showing Jade's depression, the way that Vicky's parents can't quite deal with her being alive, how Jade's parents don't really know how to comfort her, or break through her misery. Through it all, Vicky is still there, an imaginary friend that Jade allows herself to keep because she can't deal with losing her best friend for good.

This is a sad sort of book, and one that I can imagine might promote a lot of family discussion. While it isn't explicitly sold as a counselling book, I can also imagine it helping a lot with children who are going through the grieving process.

You can get a paperback copy from Amazon for under £4.50 - well worth it.

Summary: A terrific handling of a difficult subject