Michael Rosen's Sad Book

by Michael Rosen

Other authorsQuentin Blake (Illustrator)

Hardcover, 2005

Status

Available

Genres

Children's Books

Collection

Children's Circulating

Publication

Candlewick (2005), Edition: 1st, 32 pages

Description

A man tells about all the emotions that accompany his sadness over the death of his son, and how he tries to cope.

User reviews

LibraryThing member edspicer

Michael Rosen’s smiling face greets us on page one. We expect smiles in picture books. His smile, however, does not seem to fit the text that describes a very big kind of sad. Closer inspection of the illustration, however, reveals a forced smile. We see that this smile is superficial and the

text makes it clear that Rosen smiles because we expect the people we like to behave in this way.

Rosen’s son Eddie is dead and Michael Rosen’s Sad Book is gut wrenching honest with a perfect title. In one sequence we see Eddie as a baby, then as a young boy, next comes Eddie as a teen, and the final frame is blank because Eddie is dead. Rosen exhibits his anger and hints at a dark rage, “Sometimes because I'm sad I do bad things. I can't tell you what they are. They're too bad. And it's not fair to the cat.”

Little things like doing one thing to be proud of each day or realizing the difference between “sad” and “bad” begin to make a difference for Rosen. He remembers rainy days with his mum, Eddie laughing, and birthday parties with cakes and candles. The last pages of the book show Rosen in front of a single candle with its mixture of secular and spiritual light. The gray is greatly reduced and we see hints that tomorrow will be much brighter.

Quentin Blake has done a superb job illustrating the text. The words are perfect. Together we have a book that far surpasses the strengths of both. Highly recommended for Middle School and High School and a must buy for social workers and counselors.

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LibraryThing member Goedi

Whoa. I'm not sure it's fair to unleash such a book on unsuspecting readers. Don't just skim it in a bookstore unless you carry tissues, is all I can say.

LibraryThing member Zmrzlina

I stumbled on this book in the "aging" section at Borders. It really has nothing at all to do with aging. It has everything to do with death and sadness. It is never sentimental. It is a brutal, honest and beautiful look at grief and sadness. Perhaps too intense for young child, though fine for

middle school and older. And perfect for the adult who would sooner swallow knives than pick up any of the sappy grief books that sell so well in the chain bookstore... the "chicken soup for the grieving soul" sort of books that have a silver lining behind every sadness.

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LibraryThing member scroeser

I read this in a bookstore today, and I feel like I will never forget it.

LibraryThing member yarb

Rosen's exposition of sadness strikes the perfect tone: plain, nuanced and mature.

LibraryThing member isaacfellows

This book will break your heart. Blake's scribbly drawings are incredible, so textured and apparently effortless. I'd use this book carefully, since its subject matter is very deep and requires a bit of processing. Library patrons looking for books about grief would benefit from being pointed

toward this one.

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LibraryThing member emgriff

Michael Rosen describes the emotions he feels after the death of his son and mother. His portrayal of the realities of grief and depression are simple, spot-on, and unflinchingly honest. The ink sketches depict the darkness of the author's struggle with hopelessness and rage, as well as his

attempts to move forward. It is a painful book to read and is likely not suitable for all children or for very young children. For those who have struggled with depression and loss, however, it could be very powerful to see the author's experience and feelings put into words so effectively. This would be a useful book to have on hand for school counselors to use as a resource as well. I can certainly see the value in including this book in a collection that serves fifth graders and up, although I would probably shelve it with nonfiction titles rather than picture books.

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LibraryThing member TheMightyQuinn

Michael tells about his son who has died, how it makes him feel, and how he deals with the loss. Classic Quentin Blake sketches that expose Blake's range within sketching. This is a book best read in adult/child pairs or groups and may be a book only to introduce to help children understand loss

and not as a casual story time book. Acceptable for all readers and a worthy addition to any collection.

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LibraryThing member Tess22

Bookshops are full of things that break your heart, but few capture the simplicity of raw sadness. This is not a comfortable book to read, but it is an extraordinarily comforting one.

LibraryThing member derbygirl

(easy) In this book, the emotion sadness is explored and it is made clear through the author's narrative that sadness can affect anyone at anytime over anything. It just depends on the person what their personal sadness is.The author also explores different solutions on how to deal with sadness and

that feeling sad is ok. This book would be good to read to a child who has experienced a loss through death. It would also be good to read in general, because sadness, for whatever reason, may be an emotion children may not understand when they feel it or may have not had much experience with. A conversation with young listeners would be to talk about what has made them sad. This book is not a very happy book, which is what we are used to most of the time with children's book. I guess if it was intended to be a happy book then the author wouldn't have entitled it "Sad Book"!

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LibraryThing member lekenned

This is about Micheal Rosen's book about being sad and how its ok to be sad, everyone has things they get sad about. He tells about how he copes with being sad and how he tries to make himself happy again.

LibraryThing member kclopez

Micheal Rosen's The Sad Book centers around a man who is sad, due to the death of his son. He explains his sadness, but talks about the things that helps him cope with his sadness like remembering the good memories and talking to friends. This is a great book to read to child who has dealt with a

loss and feels alone.

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LibraryThing member laurenwhite92

I did not like this book at all. I would never give it to a child because the only message I got out of it was that if you loose someone you love, you can try as hard as you want but you will never get over it and be happy again. That is an awful message to send to young children, especially a

child that might be going through the loss of a loved one, and I would not recommend that they read this.

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LibraryThing member jwesley

Michael Rosen's Sad Book tells a story about a man, his sadness, and how it affects his life. His sadness stems from the loss of his mom and his son. He goes on to write about his sadness as well as the things he does to cope with his sadness. However, it seems as if the things he does bring back

memories that leads him to encounter sadness again. I would recommend this book to a child, who may feel the same as the character in the book, but I may have to explain a few things to help them understand. The theme I picked up from this book is that sadness is something we all encounter, but we must do something to keep our spirit's up.

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LibraryThing member TheReadingTub

In a word, this Michael Rosen's Sad Book is "raw." He pulls no punches about the feelings that come with losing someone close to you. It is a picture book, but it is for more an older audience. Mature readers dealing with loss or death may find comfort in this story. It is sad, but it has a

comforting "I'm not alone" way about it, and Rosen has suggestions they can try to help get them through their grief.

Pros: This very special book could be great comfort to a preteen or teen dealing with the loss of someone to whom they were close.

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LibraryThing member Emma_Manolis

I picked this up for the Quentin Blake illustrations and thy did not disappoint. I did not expect to find such raw emotions in a children's book. Rosen just openly shares his feelings about sadness and depression and does not sugarcoat it in the slightest. I like that a lot. I think this could be a

great book to show children that it is ok to be sad sometimes. Sadness is a natural emotion. Great book.

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