Hertle and Bertel are the best of friends. They are different but that doesn't matter. Like all good friends they support each other in every situation. Then one day Hertle is no longer there.
Life and death are mysteries - especially death - the hollow feeling when a dear friend or family member is no longer there. Wow!! This book deals with a BIG topic - the death of a friend - but it takes quite a different approach. When Hertle Hare vanishes, all Bertel the Turtle can see is a great big empty hole.
How can he fill this hole. Spoiler alert - thank goodness for the quiet wisdom of Gerda Bear.
"Now, Gerda was gentle, and Gerda was steady, so she waited with Bertle until he was ready. She cuddled that small turtle-child as he cried and let him feel all he was feeling inside."
Gerda suggests filling the hole with happy memories. The hole will not go away but filling it with these memories helps to lift some of the deep sadness Bertle is feeling. We have seen his full range of emotions from confusion to anger and denial, so it is wonderful to see him finally find a way to move forward.
Depicting several stages of grief, this sweet book is a tender portrayal of a character grappling with loss. The narrative is open-ended—Hertle is just “gone” one day—so readers in many situations will be able to relate. The steady, rhyming text works well with the painterly, roughly textured illustrations, which balance out the sad subject matter. There is no happy ever after – Bertle’s smile at the end is a sad one – but this reflects the reality of learning to live in a different way, without the person you have loved so dearly. This is crucial to help children understand their complex emotions, but it is done with a gentle touch. Just Imagine
Depicting several stages of grief, this sweet book is a tender portrayal of a character grappling with loss. The narrative is open-ended—Hertle is just “gone” one day—so readers in many situations will be able to relate. The steady, rhyming text works well with the painterly, roughly textured illustrations, which balance out the sad subject matter with a bright palette. Kirkus
Here is a set of discussion questions to use with this book although I think this is a book I would share with one child in a family rather than in a large classroom setting. Add this book to your list of books that deal with loss and grief - it is a truly special one to share with a young child. (but as I have mentioned previously it is good to talk about these topics long before there is a loss in your family)
You can see other books illustrated by Thomas Docherty here. And you can see other books by John Dougherty here.
Awards:
I did enjoy the names of the characters in this story - Hurtle the Hare and Bertle the Turtle which is surely a nod to the famous Aesop fable of the Hare and Tortoise.
Companion book (please try to find this) it would be the perfect book to read after The Hare-Shaped hole.
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