by Sarah Tagholm
illustrated by Manu Montoya
 
Ross stretches his hand out to sister, Fay. A quiet, still, woodlouse rests in his palm. “When will my woodlouse wake up?”, he asks. “I think…never”, replies Fay. Ross tries to stir Lord Jeffry the First with a bit of pear. Lord Jeffry remains unmoved. Ross' lip wobbles. And wobbles some more. In the middle of the night, he gets out of bed to check their other household pets -Flufflehoff, Barbara, Betty Nibblethwaite- in case they too have ‘caught’ death. To stop Ross’ anxious night time checks, Fay finally takes things in hand with warm snuggles and a trip to the library where they learn all about pet heavens and reincarnations. And so a small child learns, slowly, to come to terms with his first experience of loss. 
 
The siblings are the undoubted stars of this narrative while, in the background, we see their two mums (interracial) looking gently on. A first look at bereavement which introduces the idea of different beliefs and how these offer comfort. The text is delightful and Lauren-Child-esque, as it captures the logical, often wise, ‘nonsense’ dialogue of young children. The illustrations work perfectly to layer up the narrative, extending the pet-love in to objects and small-creature-themed motifs and patterns. Once the pet afterlives have been brought to life from the pages of the library books, Montoya's pictures expand with further possibilities. At the heart of this story, is a family held together by empathetic observations and care. Mixed race family. 
 
‘A very sweet story of a young child’s feelings of loss– acknowledged by a very supportive family' (Jayne, Primary Inclusion Manager, Letterbox Library reviewer). Age 4-7, Hardback 24pp   
 
Themes: Diverse Families   Themes: LGBTQ+