Part of Me Died Too: Stories of Creative Survival Among Bereaved Children and Teenagers [Hardcover]

Virginia Lynn Fry (Author), Katherine Paterson (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 10 and up

A moving and eloquent chronicle of eleven children, ranging from toddlers to teenagers, who have lost family or friends shows how drawing, music, and other rituals can help the grieving process, offering creative strategies for dealing with loss.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Although the author directly addresses young readers, this unusually perceptive and sensitive book can be shelved with confidence alongside adult titles about bereavement and death. Fry, an artist and bereavement counselor at a hospice in Vermont, presents 10 graceful studies of children and teenagers in mourning, progressing from the experience of a toddler preoccupied and puzzled by the death of a family dog, to a 13-year-old girl's reactions to the accidental death of her mother, to the complex situation of a girl who protected herself and her small brother as her father killed first her mother, then himself. Fry's compassion and her admiration of her young subjects shine through the sadness of these accounts; to each of the 10 chapters she appends a short list of "creative survival strategies" that outline journal exercises and other projects to help channel grief. An epilogue visits each of the mourners some years after their losses, thus implicitly demonstrating to the reader that sorrow can indeed be surmounted. Adults will find much of interest in Fry's discussions of the particularities of children's responses to death; young mourners and their peers will be moved and fortified by Fry's thoughtfulness and honesty. Illustrated with drawings by bereaved children. Ages 10-up.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

Grade 5 Up?In this sensitive and informative presentation, a hospice artist and counselor uses examples from her work with children, ages 18 months and up, to teach about the healing process. Fry's focus is on loss due to death, but the healing methods described could also be applied to divorce or adandonment. Through 11 true accounts, readers see how young people face the deaths of pets, parents, grandparents, siblings, and friends caused by long-term illness as well as by accident, murder, and suicide. As the author presents the stories, she explains how the children dealt with their grief and often interprets the artwork they did at the time. These black-and-white drawings appear beside appropriate text. Each chapter ends with practical suggestions for readers' self-help in overcoming or facing such a trauma and with an annotated recommendation of an age-appropriate book or two. An epilogue brings readers up to date on the progress of each person. A useful book that illustrates methods of separating facts from emotional responses and suggests ways to bring out and deal with those emotions.?Dona Weisman, Northeast Texas Library System, Garland
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 10 and up
  
• Hardcover: 240 pages
• Publisher: Dutton Juvenile; 1st edition (February 1, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0525450688
• ISBN-13: 978-0525450689
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 7.3 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #605,170 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This book is amazing, October 3, 2003

By 

tara traver (upstate, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Part of Me Died Too: Stories of Creative Survival Among Bereaved Children and Teenagers (Hardcover)

I was given the amazing opportunity to spend time with Virginia Fry while living in Vermont this past winter. My 14 year old sister had recently passed away after her stuggle against cancer. I was completely lost, and met with Virginia several times. She is one of the most amazing people that I've ever been priviledged enough to have come into my life. This book enveloped every part of her ideas and extremely heartfelt suggestions to get you through the most horrible times. She is such an amazing person and this book reflects that to the fullest extent.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Chapter 5 is about me, February 7, 2002

By 

Amy Petrucelli (Framingham, Mass) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Part of Me Died Too: Stories of Creative Survival Among Bereaved Children and Teenagers (Hardcover)

My name is Amy Petrucelli and chapter 5 is about me, my sister Betsy and our brother Frankie.
The very first time I read Ginny's story and at that time it was a draft, it brought tears to my my eyes and my late mothers. If it were not for Ginny and Hospice to help us as children to cope with death and dying, I do not think I would be here today. This book is more than helpful and insightful, at least for me. I encourage any person(s) having known a child or know one who is going through death and dying to read this book and share it with that child and help them to work through their loss, questions and fears, Lord knows the author Virginia Fry did that for me.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars IT WAS EXCELLENT! I LOVED IT!, March 15, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Part of Me Died Too: Stories of Creative Survival Among Bereaved Children and Teenagers (Hardcover)

I really enjoyed this book. I bought it a few years after my mother died, and it helped me a great deal with what I was feeling, thinking, and seeing. It also helped me deal with the day-to-day struggles that I encountered. Thank you so much for writing this book.