A Must-Read For Children Touched By Cancer

Children's author, Patricia Polacco, is somewhat of a hero at my daughter's elementary school. Ms. Polacco has been to our school several times and her books have brought hours of pleasure to my usually-reluctant reader.

Patricia Polacco at our elementary school

So when when I heard Lily's dad reading Ms. Polacco's book, The Lemonade Club, to our princess, I didn't blink an eye...until I started to listen to the plot of the book

 

which is about the usually adult topic of cancer.

Traci and Marilyn are best friends. One day Marilyn is being bullied about her weight while Traci stands up for her pal. Shortly thereafter, Marilyn begins losing weight and is tired all the time. The diagnosis: leukemia. With the help of the girls' teacher, Miss Wichelman who believes that “when life hands you lemons, you make lemonade,” the young ladies learn about how Traci's disease will be treated.

The Lemonade Club is an AMAZING book 

because it doesn't just gloss over the topic of leukemia. There is genuine shock when Miss Wichelman's class first hears of Marilyn's diagnosis.  Similarly, readers feel the horror and experience grief when Traci loses her hair due to chemo. But there's joy here, as well, as Miss Wichelman and her class welcome Traci back to class and astonishment when someone unexpected divulges that she, too, has cancer.

The book is a MUST-READ book for any child touched by this topic. 

It will resonate with children who have cancer or know someone who does. Best of all: it's a true store written by someone who was a witness to it all.

Do you know of any other books which might help a child touched by cancer?

ParentingWithCancer.com – An Invaluable Site If You're A Parent Who Has Cancer

Photo By Daniel Danzico

“You have cancer.” Those are words no one wants to hear, let alone a parent with small children. Yet, Jen Singer heard those words when she was diagnosed with stage three non-Hodgkin's lymphoma in 2007. This mother of two young sons tried to steer her kids through her rounds of chemotherapy and radiation while looking for a comprehensive reference place for parents to find helpful information. When she couldn't find either books or a website that provided what she was looking for, she swore that if she made it to remission, she would start such a site.

That's how ParentingWithCancer.com came to be. It's “the place where moms and dads can go to find out how to tell their children the words they never thought they’d have to say, 'I have cancer.'” It discusses the initial diagnosis, the emotions the family will deal with, treatments the patient may face, and life changes that will need to be made. The site provides a safe place where people can share their stories and seeks to reassure parents and kids going through this ordeal that you are not alone.

Ms. Singer's website contains several sections, among them:

• A Parent's Section, which tells the personal stories of parents who had cancer and how they dealt with having a family and navigating the illness.
• A Spouses & Caregivers' Section, with even more personal stories about cancer patients and their loved ones. I especially liked the posting on Why Protecting Your Kids From Your Cancer Can Hurt Them.
• A section For Children, which contains postings like My Parent Had Cancer And It Really Sucked and When Mom Or Dad Has Cancer

The site also contains a Reference page of invaluable resources you may not find anywhere else.

ParentingWithCancer.com tackles conversations you might not want to have, but once you have cancer, will need to. It helps patients face, head on, topics that may appear taboo and provides courage and guidance when those topics need to be addressed. Ms. Singer's site is invaluable to anyone facing a diagnosis of cancer and their loved ones as well. Check it out, bookmark it, and then pass it along to someone who might need it. 

Note:  This article first appeared on www.thegeekparent.com.