Publishing Response to Sandy Hook

As an offshoot of Alya's post from Monday, I wanted to share this short piece from Publishers Weekly. The article highlights the books and other goods that publishers and bookstore owners are sending to Newtown. In particular, Tanglewood Publishing is donating hundreds of copies of Audrey Penn's The Kissing Hand, which focuses on the great leap young children take when separating from their parents to go to school.

From Publishers Weekly:

"Kim Pescatelli, a Connecticut mother and knitter, knew that many schools use Audrey Penn’s The Kissing Hand (Tanglewood Books) in kindergarten to help ease children’s anxiety about being separated from their family during the school day. Her idea: to give a copy of the book along with a pair of Kissing Hand mittens with hearts on the palm to children in Newtown." Read the rest of the article here.

Thoughtful Pieces on Coping and Helping Children

The tragic events last Friday at Sandy Hook Elementary School have left a cold numbness on everyone's hearts and minds. As a graduate student of children's literature, I feel a pang whenever I glance at my children's books--part of why I pursue this is because of the light these stories bring to kids, the excitement, amazement, and comfort they glean from these silly and not-so-silly books.  As such, I particularly appreciated this article on the Huffington Post, about the comfort and strength reading offers in times of trauma. I especially think using children's books to help kids cope--be it focusing on loss, heroes, or families--enables them to connect their emotions more easily to positivity and hope.

Two other thoughtful pieces on how to guide children through a traumatic experience can be found on:
Educating Alice
The Moving Castle