*I received a free copy of this book, with thanks to the author, Mayo Clinic Press and Kelly Lacey of Love Books Tours. The decision to review and my opinions are my own.*
Blurb: This inviting chapter book series explores health topics through the friendly lens of therapy dogs.
Follow an adorable therapy dog helping a child through a cancer diagnosis with strong messages of empathy, kindness, and courage.
Therapy dogs are specially trained to help kids through medical experiences—from lifting spirits, motivating movement, modelling the power of play, and more.
Nonfiction back matter provides more information about medical topics introduced in the books, from acute to chronic issues, while also providing more information about therapy dog programs and the Mayo Clinic Children's Center.
Mayo Clinic Press Kids creates empowering health and wellness content in partnership with pediatric experts.
This short chapter book is written in simple, explanatory language that is easy for children to understand and follow, and the pictures are both super-cute and informative, helping to illustrate (literally!) the procedures under discussion.
In this book, we find out about what can happen when a child has leukemia and the process of diagnosing and treating their condition, all through the eyes of adorable facility dog Dash.
We see Dash putting on a hospital gown and an anaesthetic mask, and having her vital signs taken to show young Ada that there is nothing to be afraid of; playing ball hide-and-seek with Bart, who is working on his wheelchair skills; helping Ada with some jigsaws and practising her spelling words, and giving her the confidence to make a new friend in fellow patient Maggie.
With the dog's-eye view and calm, positive explanations, the book helps to clear up any doubts, fears and embarrassments that children (or their parents) may feel about serious illnesses like cancer and leukemia and the process of treating them. Child readers will relate to Ada's fear of the hospital setting and her fear on missing important life events (a spelling bee) as a result of her condition.
Along the way we also get some insight into the life of a therapy dog, meeting Dash's toy chicken comforter Blinky and her handler Navya, and seeing her doubts about being the newest therapy dog in the team.
The author has taken a health situation that is sensitive, upsetting and frightening for children and carers and presented it in a clear, age-appropriate and reassuring way. At the end of the story there is some more information from Ada about her leukemia and treatment, a few words from Dash about her role in the hospital, and then an introduction to Alicia - a real-life Mayo Clinic facility dog.
I whole-heartedly recommend this whole series of books as a great resource for GPs, hospitals, schools and parents and a way to make upsetting subjects more positive and hopeful for children experiencing a difficult time.
Here are Minishine (10) and Babybows (7) thoughts:
Babybows: I think Dash is really cute and I like how all the dogs help people when they feel sick. I don't like cancer but I like Blinky and Blinky is really cute and so is Dash.
Minishine: I liked this book but I also found it a bit sad and scary—
Babybows: Same! Because they put a knife in her chest to put the medicine thing in! (He means that the little girl, Ada, had port surgery).
Minishine: —yes, same as Babybows. Because of the surgery. And cancer is scary... it's not nice seeing the children feeling so poorly. But I like how the dogs all look after them. When the little boy was doing his exercising, he didn't even know he was doing it because he thought he was playing a game with Dash and I thought that was really clever! And my favourite characters are Dash and Ada.
Babybows: The pictures were really cute! My favourite character was Blinky and I was upset when Blinky had a ripped beak but I am glad he got fixed. Like when Mum fixes my Kanga, that I need when I feel sad or tired or poorly.
Minishine: Like how the doctors were fixing the children in the hospital. And Dash helped!
About the author
Pat McCaw, M.D., is a family practice physician passionate about using books to help children with emotional and health issues. She teaches classes on how to use picture books in the classroom and writes online educational lessons on science and physiology.
Website: https://patmccawauthor.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/MccawPat
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/patmccawauthor/
Beth Hughes is an illustrator and concept artist. She loves telling stories and using art to get those stories out. Her work credits include children's books, mural designs, concept art, and character design work for animation.
Don't forget to check out the other blog stops on the tour for more great reviews and content (see the poster below for details)!
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