A Last Goodbye by Elin Kelsey illustrated by Soyeon Kim

 "After you die, friends and family will gather. Some will travel long distances and stay for many hours. Others will place wreaths or drape you in a blanket of forest green."

Kirkus Star review - Staggering.

Kirkus Star - A remarkable achievement.

Kirkus Star - Both important and breathtakingly beautiful.

Kirkus Star - Profound and entirely wonderful.

The Last Goodbye is one book in a series by elin Kelsey illustrated by Soyeon Kim. The library I visit each week has all of these books and all of them should be added to your school library. In a previous post I talked about Wild Ideas. 

A Last Goodbye is, as the title implies, a book about the end of life. In this case the end of life for various animals such as the elephant, killer whale and chimpanzee.  As we saw with Fox: A circle of life story, A Last Goodbye is a cycle of life story. 

Blurb: "From the treetops of Madagascar to the vast waters of the Pacific Ocean, species all over the planet express grief and care for each other at the end of life. For some, the last goodbye is loud and communal. For others, death is marked by small offers and quiet observation."

Take a look at this web site from the Canadian publisher Owl Kids. You can see the art processes used by Soyeon Kim, read about the topic of death and grief and how to approach this with a child and also find some teacher notes for A Last Goodbye. I am not sure I would use this book with a whole class but used quietly in a family this book could help open up some important conversations. This is not a book to read immediately after the death of a loved one but rather it is book you might read alongside other books about animals hopefully months or even years before your young reading companion has to face the sadness of death in their own family or wider circle. This book is about a tough topic but it is handled with care and a light but truthful touch. Please take the time to watch this four minute video about the importance of talking to children about grief well before they need to process these difficult emotions. This is a very special book. Kirkus (see above) said "staggering".

The discussion topics in this guide are written to allow for broad conversation of loss and grief with all students. Loss can refer to the death of a loved one, as depicted in the book; yet we all experience many different kinds of change and loss throughout life. Examples of loss can include moving to a new home, leaving your classroom at the end of the year or a friend moving away. The discussions in this book are meant to foster social-emotional learning, including skills such as identifying emotions, coping with emotions, and empathy. From the teacher notes.

I was please to see the name Mary Beth Leatherdale associated with this book. I met Mary Beth in the US a couple of years ago at the USBBY conference in Austin Texas. We were both invited to speak at the Texas Book Festival about publishing trends in our respective countries.