Sometimes I like to host books on Joyful Antidotes that are not necessarily my ‘style’ but which I feel would be helpful to others. For instance, When Your Child is Gay: What You Need to Know by Wesley C. Davidson and Dr. Jonathan Tobkes. This next book raised some eyebrows when I brought it home but I am very proud to be able to review this wonderful new book for you.
Please Explain Terrorism to Me: A Story for Children, P-E-A-R-L-S of Wisdom for Their Parents by Laurie Zelinger is, unfortunately, a very necessary book for this day and age. Dr. Laurie Zelinger is a distinguished Board Certified Psychologist with Diplomate status in school psychology as well as a credentialed play therapist who serves on executive boards of state and national organizations. With this publication, she presents a new and frightening concept in a straightforward manner to help children understand terrorism and better equip parents in explaining the topic.
The book begins in a story format, told from a child’s perspective. A young boy has just seen a news account of a terrorist attack and is confused as to what has happened and why nobody at home is speaking about it. The story really showed just how perceptive a child can be and how frightened they can become (e.g. the young boy in the book experiences bad nightmares). It certainly brought home just how important it is to explain things like terrorism to a child – and in the right way.
One may be wary about reading this book to their child in the fear that it would scare them more, but I really feel this wouldn’t be the case. Zelinger makes it very clear that terrorists are just a handful of bad people and focuses strongly on just how many people are on hand to help in a bad situation i.e. police force, firemen, etc. There are also some beautiful illustrations on each page, which I think will help children feel less overwhelmed with the context of the book.
The final few pages of Please Explain Terrorism to Me are solely for adults and it is here that Zelinger focuses on the P-E-A-R-L-S: Prepare, Explain, Answer, Reassure, Listen, Safeguard. I don’t have children myself but this advice was so good I vowed to pass it on to as many people as possible – and it even helped me understand terrorism a bit better.
Overall, I really loved this book and I can’t stress enough how valuable the information included is. If you have any questions you would like answered before purchasing Please Explain Terrorism to Me, pop them in the comments below and I will do my best to help.
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I received this book through Beck Valley Books Book Tours, I have volunteered to share my review and all the opinions are 100% my own.
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Thank you so much for taking the time to share your thoughts on Please Explain Terrorism to Me today xx