"Book help children cope when parents called to duty"

With the recent deployment of our local Army National Guard 1075th Medium Truck Company and countless other U.S troops committed to serving our country overseas, many families are dealing with the absence of loved ones. This separation is emotionally difficult for adults, who for the most part, can at least understand the circumstances behind the separation. However, for small children, it is nearly impossible to understand why mommy or daddy is not safe at home. This situation is made more complex by not knowing how long the parent may be gone. To help children and their parents cope with this tough situation, the Columbus Public Library can offer a number of wonderful books that deal with this difficult topic. One of the books I strongly recommend is “While You Are Away” by Eileen Spinelli.
 
“While You Are Away” is about three small children whose parents are in the military. The first child is a little boy whose father is stationed on a “big ship.” The boy wonders what his daddy is eating for breakfast, where his daddy sleeps, and who will bring his daddy chicken soup when he’s sick. These are concerns all children who have a parent absent from the home would have.

The second child is a little girl whose mother flies a “fast plane.” She explains that she looks up at the sky and thinks happy thoughts, so her mommy can fly through them like clouds and think of her. The little girl then talks about how she wraps herself up in her mommy’s old green sweater, plays her mommy’s music box, and dances with her mommy’s pillow pretending that it’s mommy. Again, these are little things most children whose parent is stationed away might do.

The third child is a boy whose father drives a “speedy jeep.” The little boy talks about how he likes to bring pictures of his papa to “show and tell” at daycare. He reads letters from his papa to his pet hamster. And, he tends the family garden like his father would do if he were home, which includes scaring away those pesky rabbits, which every good gardener has to do now and then.

This book packs a powerful and emotional message as it is written from the perspective of the child speaking directly to the parent. The vocabulary is very simple, the reader can imagine a small child speaking the words to his or her mother or father. The very first line in the book is “While you are on that big ship, Daddy, far, far away, I miss you.” This opening sentence expresses the emotion of the children throughout the story. Though one gets a sense of sadness while reading “While You Are Away,” the book does end with the safe return of each parent. This ending gives hope to children reading the book that although a parent may be gone, it is not forever and that she or he will return home safely.

“While You Are Away” is a wonderful children’s book for a family that has a loved one proudly serving his or her country because it relates to our current national situation and it gives hope for the awaited return. If you have any questions regarding “While You Are Away” or you need recommendations of books for difficult situations children may face, please contact me at 564-7116, extension. 4.

Recent donations to the Library Foundation include those in memory of Donald Beckenhauer from Connie Korte, Mr. and Mrs. Mathew Fleischer, Mr. and Mrs. John McPhail, Mr. and Mrs. Prent Roth, and Mr. and Mrs. Robert Trautwein.

Visit the Library’s new website at “columbuslibrary.info” to search the catalog, check the bookmobile schedule or read previous issues of the “Librarian’s Shelf”.