Review by Chris Singer
About the author:
Emma Piers was born in Kent in 1958. She has combined her skills in creative writing with her background in counselling,to create her therapeutic stories. All her work is co-created with her partner Mark Turner, who provides the illustrative content. Emma attended creative writing courses when her two children were young, and started writing as a hobby from that time onwards. She lives in Dorset, and loves wandering along the amazing coastlines, walking in the New Forest, and exploring and learning about natural environments everywhere.
About the book:
These stories are aimed towards helping children ages 5 – 11 years develop confident, happy and peaceful self identities, particularly during challenging times. The stories explore four themes common to many children: childhood bereavement, separation, bullying, and childhood anxiety and depression. Written in third person to enable the child to impersonalise themselves from the story content, rich metaphor and imagery is used through out to help the child absorb healing messages that are helpful to them.
The author uses her background experience in counselling, to help children who are struggling with feelings like guilt, shame, depression, and other immobilizing and self destructive emotions. During times of change and challenge, it is very easy, and often inevitable, that a child can assume they they’ve done ‘something wrong’ and there’s ‘something wrong ‘with them. The author uses various fantasy characters who undergo various challenges, and are shown by their friends, in ways that children can respond and relate to easily, that they are not the cause of the circumstances. The book has been carefully crafted to help children develop a sense of wholeness, happiness, peace and self confidance. This helps them avoid self injurious preoccupations with seeking other’s approval, or need to control and dominate, as they become older.
Watch the trailer: