Book Review & Giveaway
An Empowering Story for Healthy Children
Who Care About a Person Living with Cancer
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Join us for this tour from Jan 5 to Feb 1, 2021!
Book Description
M.C. is a cancer cell who shares just enough information about the nature of the disease to promote dialogue and minimize fear. The scary part of cancer is the unknown. Learn about doctors who look for cancer.
Understand feelings children experience and learn ways to cope. Empower children with knowledge and how to make a difference. M.C. Plays Hide & Seek strengthens communication and builds emotional health.
Book Details
Book Title:Â MC Plays Hide and Seek: An Empowering Story for Healthy Children Who Care About a Person Living with Cancer by Eva Grayzel
Category: Children’s Fiction (Ages 3-7), 64 pages
Genre:Â Children’s Picture Book
Publisher:Â Mascot Books
Release date:Â Â Jan 5, 2021
Content Rating:Â G for everyone.
Book Description
M.C. is a cancer cell who shares just enough information about the nature of the disease to promote dialogue and minimize fear. The scary part of
cancer is the unknown. Learn about doctors who look for cancer.
Understand feelings children experience and learn ways to cope. Empower
children with knowledge and how to make a difference. M.C. Plays Hide
& Seek strengthens communication and builds emotional health.
Buy the Book
Amazon.com
Eva Grayzel ~ B&N
My Thoughts
Cancer is a topic that most people would rather step around and even totally ignore when it comes to children. But author Eva Grayzel gives us valid reasons why this isn’t a good idea. And she even helps us by providing a resource.
M.C. Plays Hide & Seek provides wonderful information along with illustrations that help keep a difficult topic kid-friendly. The book is simple but full of facts. Cancer is depicted as a little green figure.
The illustrations are colorful and you might even say captivating. They keep the topic as light as possible, yet honest and factual.Â
Though I can’t say I’ve read any other books like this, I can say this felt perfect for individual use, counseling, doctors’ offices, hospitals, libraries, and anywhere that this topic needs to be expanded on.Â
My thanks to iRead Book Tours and the author for gifting me a review copy and allowing me to post my honest thoughts.
Rating: ☆☆☆☆☆
Meet the Author
And Author Interview
After enjoying this book, I decided to discover who Eva Grayzel is and why she wrote this wonderful children’s story. Join me on my journey.
httpss://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4sdTowt9kU0
Eva Grayzel is a motivational speaker, storyteller, and cancer survivor.
When her children were five and seven years old, she was diagnosed with cancer. Their fear of losing her was deep, real, and suppressed. When
she got a second chance at life, she created the Talk4Hope book series
to help children understand cancer and make it less scary.
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*Interview*
Why do you recommend sharing a cancer diagnosis with children?
Children are smarter than adults give them credit for. They hear the muffled cries, the whispering, the unusual amount of phone calls. The scariest part of cancer is the unknown. Children often make up the worst case scenario. The not-knowing is terrifying.
It’s a challenge to keep a secret! Instead, put that energy into creating open and honest paths for communication, a life lesson that will merit great reward.
Why is it important to be transparent with children about something that is scary?
Cancer is a family affair. Everyone in the family will be affected by the change to the daily routine. Excluding children from a cosmic family event can make them feel they don’t matter. It can be the source of feeling rejected, ignored and abandoned. Diminishing a child’s feeling of their importance as a member of the family could leave them forever scarred with low self-esteem and inadequacy.
What emotions can children feel when someone they love has cancer?
Children can have many different emotions that include: fear, anxiety, frustration, confusion, anger, jealousy (of other children who don’t have to deal with a sick parent), resentment, guilt, sadness and grief over the loss of their ‘normal’ life. Protecting children from experiencing these emotions is a lost opportunity to prepare them for life.
Once I’m privy to my child’s emotions, how do I handle it?
Be honest, clear, and include your optimism for a full recovery. Talk about what your days ahead might look like. Read a book together like ‘M.C. Plays Hide & Seek‘ and after every few pages, ask if they have any questions. Remind your child their feelings matter. It’s okay to feel the way they do. Let them know you understand their feelings. Reassure them it is not their fault that you are sick. Guarantee them you are doing your best to get better.
Can you name anything positive about cancer?
Life is well-balanced even though it doesn’t feel that way when going through the challenge of treatment for cancer. There is always a positive charge to balance the negative. The goal is to recognize blessings! Notice the teamwork, support, love, learning, growth, strength, admiration, courage, kindness, friendship and hope. Bathe in the diamond-studded life lessons that can have a rippling effect, inspiring all those who know you and love you.
connect with the author
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Jan 5 – Gina Rae Mitchell – book review / giveaway
Jan 5 – Splashes of Joy – book review / guest post / giveaway
Jan 5 – Rockin’ Book Reviews – book review / guest post / giveaway
Jan 6 – Locks, Hooks and Books – book review / giveaway
Jan 7 – Reading Authors Network – book review / giveaway
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Jan 11 – Books, Tea, Healthy Me – book review / author interview / giveaway
Jan 12 – Pick a Good Book – book review / author interview / giveaway
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Jan 13 – Older & Smarter? – book review / giveaway
Jan 14 – Bound 4 Escape – book review / giveaway
Jan 14 – My Reading Journey – book review / giveaway
Jan 15 – Library of Clean Reads – book review / giveaway
Jan 18 –  Stephanie Jane – book spotlight / giveaway
Jan 18 – Westveil Publishing – book spotlight / guest post / giveaway
Jan 19 – A Mama’s Corner of the World – book review / giveaway
Jan 19 – Laura’s Interests – book review / giveaway
Jan 20 – The Bespectacled Mother – book review / guest post
Jan 21 – Cheryl’s Book Nook – book review / giveaway
Jan 22 – Ice Fairy’s Treasure Chest – book review / giveaway
Jan 25 – Reading is My Passion – book review
Jan 26 – Jazzy Book Reviews – book review / guest post / giveaway
Jan 27 – She Just Loves Books – book review / giveaway
Jan 28 – Bookswithpaulak – book review
Jan 28 – Because I said so — and other adventures in Parenting – book review / giveaway
Jan 29 – I’m Into Books – book spotlight / giveaway
Feb 1 – Instagram: All Booked Up Reviews – book review
Feb 1 – Lisa’s Reading – book review / giveaway
Feb 1 – I’d Rather Be At The Beach – book review / giveaway
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**Enter the Giveaway**
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Debbie, You nailed it when you said, ‘I’ve never read any book like this.’ When I was looking for resources for my own children, I found books that carried words like, ‘Mom is sick. Mom lost her hair. She will feel tired…..’ and it just wasn’t enough. I needed a book that was direct yet gentle. I needed a book that said what I couldn’t say! So, I wrote it. Thank you for your thoughtful review. Eva
Then I can see why you saw the need and filled it! Thank you so much.
I love these reasons for telling kids about Cancer diagnosis! I think kids are much smarter than we give them credit for sometimes. Thanks for interviewing Eva, I enjoyed learning more about her.