Missing Mummy – A picture book by Rebecca Cobb

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Published on Sunday, 22 April 2012 14:21

Last Updated on 22 April 2012

Monica Costa

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Some time ago we said goodbye to Mummy. I am not sure where she has gone…. The subject of bereavement is not an easy one to address – or even to think about. Especially when the bereaved is a child. How do we explain death? How do we answer those difficult questions, when as adults, we don’t always understand them ourselves? This book manages to talk about such a sensitive topic in a very delicate way. The best book to cover this difficult subject.

Written with the kind help and support of the Child Bereavement Charity, MISSING MUMMY has been created to help explain some of these issues and feelings in a way that can be understood and easily communicated to a child. Beautifully illustrated with moments of wonderful warmth and the gentlest humour, this is a touching, honest and helpful book that approaches a difficult subject with great integrity.

Written and illustrated by Rebecca Cobb, a new talent in children’s picture books, this extraordinary book deals with the loss of a parent from a child’s point of view. Perfectly pitched text and evocative artwork explore the many emotions a bereaved child may experience, from anger to guilt and from sadness to bewilderment. And importantly, the book also focuses on the positive – the recognition that the child is still part of a family, and that the memories of their mother are to be treasured.

Rebecca Cobb is an exciting new name in children’s picture books. Since graduating from Falmouth College of Arts in 2004 she has illustrated for many clients including Guardian Guide, Guardian Weekend magazine, The Independent and Waitrose Food Illustrated. Rebecca has collaborated on two picture storybooks with the Orange-Prize winner Helen Dunmore, both set in her native Cornwall. In 2011 Macmillan published Rebecca’s debut solo project, the hugely accomplished MISSING MUMMY which is now out in paperback. Rebecca is also author/illustrator to a second picture book with Macmillan called LUNCHTIME, and although wholly different in subject matter from her first, features the same stunning illustration style, child-friendly voice and warmth. Rebecca lives in Falmouth, Cornwall.

‘Missing Mummy says so much in a powerful and visual way – the illustrations speak volumes on their own and the minimal text provides a useful prompt to open up conversations around the many questions children may have when they experience the death of someone important in their life.’

Ann Chalmers, Chief Executive, Child Bereavement Charity

‘Missing Mummy is a sensitive, moving and beautifully illustrated book which will help children and adults together to share their feelings. It will also be a vital tool for therapists, social workers and foster carers in enabling a child to talk about the death of their mother, or of another significant person.’

Edi Carmi, Independent Child Safeguarding Consultant, Safeguarding First

RRP £5.99 Age 3+ – Published by www.panmacmillan.com on 12th April 2012.