Nowhere Hair

by Sue Glader

[lovelybookshelf]

Nowhere Hair starts off with a young girl searching for her mother's hair. The text is lighthearted with a touch of humor, but never, never dismissive of the child's feelings. The book gently addresses common fears and feelings children may have about cancer, reassuring them that they didn't cause it, can't catch it, and that how someone looks doesn't change who they are. It even encourages kids, in a very age-appropriate way, to consider what their loved one may be struggling with, such as exhaustion or confidence.

I love the look and the layout of this e-book. The whimsical font is so pretty, and Edith Buenen's watercolor illustrations are absolutely gorgeous. (Take a peek and see for yourself!) I recommend viewing the e-book in landscape mode with publisher defaults set "on."

I actually read the book aloud replacing "Mommy" with "Nanny" and only had to make one or two minor adjustments in the text to make it applicable to our situation. (My daughter C is still so young, I was afraid she'd get confused and think that I have cancer). But this story can be read "as is" and used as a starting point for discussions relevant to any family member or friend with cancer.

The page that helped C the most was a small photo of the little girl as a baby. The text reads: "She says it's like my first hairdo when I was very small." After reading the book a few times and talking some more, C no longer expressed anxiety about seeing her grandmother without hair. When we went for a visit a couple days after purchasing the book, she was completely fine.

Sue Glader has found the perfect tone to help children and the adults in their lives talk about cancer. I'm thankful to have found Nowhere Hair.