A Kiss Goodbye
4.6
5
5
1
Hardcover
USD
15.47
$15.47
Product Details
| ISBN-13: | 9781933718040 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | Tanglewood Publishing, Inc. |
| Publication date: | 04/15/2007 |
| Series: | Kissing Hand Series |
| Pages: | 32 |
| Sales rank: | 246,146 |
| Product dimensions: | 8.00(w) x 10.00(h) x (d) |
| Lexile: | AD580L (what's this?) |
| Age Range: | 3 - 8 Years |
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
Kiss Goodbye
4.6 out of 5
based on
0 ratings.
5 reviews.
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I have used this as a gift for my own children and for those children who transfer in the military due to their parents employment. Great gift and read for all!
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Sometimes we do not like doing things, but we have to do them anyways. This little raccoon did not want to leave his home in the tree, but his mother insisted. He was not happy at first, but in the end he met new friends and decided he wanted to stay in his new home. This shows children to always look at the bright side of things.
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Audrey Penn has a good thing going with her Chester Raccoon series of books. I don't know many parents of kindergarteners who aren't familiar with The Kissing Hand and she's followed it up with a few other books about Chester Raccoon learning something new.
In A Kiss Goodbye, Chester and family have to move. There's a mark around the tree he lives in which is an indication that the humans will soon be cutting the tree down. His mother wants to get him to a new home before the current one is taken down, but Chester doesn't want to move. He is comfortable in his current home and he doesn't want to go somewhere where he doesn't know anyone. Moving is a scary thought for Chester, just as it often is for human children, too. But there is no choice here. The home is coming down.
But of course Chester discovers some good things about his new home and new neighbors and learns that sometimes moving can be a good thing.
The book is, of course, highly didactic, but to teach a lesson is a big part of why we would read this to our children in the first place. Fortunately, Penn gives us familiar and adorable animal characters, and artist Barbara L. Gibson provides colorful, fun pictures so that children don't know they are being taught something.
It is definitely an interesting choice to have the move come about because of a planned cutting when this could just as easily have been a move necessitated by a forest fire or other natural disaster. This should hopefully prompt some parent/child discussion.
One aspect that I questioned was that Chester's new friend is a female and while, again, nothing is overt here, there is definitely the impression that Chester's interest in his new friend is more than merely platonic and that he's maybe even a little confused by this new interest of his. I found this distracting and felt I didn't need this other layer to the story.
Still, this is an overwhelmingly positive book for children.
Looking for a good book? For anyone with young children and facing a new move, this is a delightful and helpful picture book.
I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.
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Dear Chester is having a difficult time because he is faced with the sad happening that children all over our United States (and the world) have to come to terms with these days: he has to move away from the security of the home he knows and loves. He also has to move away from his familiar friends and school. Many today have to move away from daddys or mommys or grandparents, too.
While his mother does all she can to reassure Chester, he is still sad. Fortunately, he knows how to express his feelings. He also finds ways to comfort himself. Ultimately, Chester does make the move with his mom and little brother, finds his new home comfortable and meets a new friend.
What makes this book so powerful and beautiful for children is the path that Chester shows them by expressing his feelings of sadness and loss, his fears about moving, and his finding ways to literally carry pieces of his home and room with him to his new house. These and other ways of coping are invaluable for children in crisis, as well as children who simply have to move for reasons of their parent's work transfers and other purposes.
Chester's readjustment to his new home shows a child the hope for new friends and a new adventure in a different home. And, the original "kissing hand" is carried through to assure children and Chester that no matter where he is there's the security of love that's always with him.
The illustrations are, again, simply beautiful and telling of the story in this book. It can be read from several different venues, but having the hard copy makes it available for a child to pick up whenever he or she needs the extra boost of support and security.
I love this book which I hope to get for my grandsons who've moved to CA. I've already read the book to the eldest one for his cassette tape from Grammie.
Highly recommended for children of all ages, actually... Moms and Dads, too.
5 safe harbor stars
By Grammie Bee
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