Badger's Parting Gifts: A picture book to help children deal with death and grief
By (Author) Susan Varley
Andersen Press Ltd
Andersen Press Ltd
26th March 1984
United Kingdom
Children
Fiction
Childrens / Teenage personal and social topics: Death and grief
Childrens / Teenage fiction: Nature and animal stories
823.914
Winner of Mother Goose Award (UK).
32
Width 262mm, Height 218mm, Spine 9mm
321g
Badger is so old that he knows he will soon die. He tries to prepare his friends for this event, but he does die, they are still grief-stricken. Gradually they come to terms with their grief by remembering all the practical things Badger taught them, and so Badger lives on in his friends' memories of him.
"I bow down to this one. It left me with a lump in the throat, and I would have no qualms at all about recommending it to any child. Tender, poignant, touching. Good book." -- Martin Waddell * Irish News *
"Varley's text is sensitive, comforting, gentle. This is one sensible and honest approach to death for the young." -- Elaine Moss * T. L. S. *
"Beautifully detailed ink and watercolour illustrations carry the reader right into the heart of this story" * Carousel *
"[One of] the best childrens books for help during hard times Badgers Parting Gifts has helped millions of children understand death" * The Sun *
"Sensitively written" * Woman's Own *
Susan Varley is a prize-winning artist who has illustrated many books for Andersen Press. Her picture book Badger's Parting Gifts is one of the most enduring of all time, winning many prizes, including the Mother Goose Award in 1985. Ginette Thomas lives in Aberdeenshire in Scotland. She has three children.