Books For Keeps
  • Home
  • Reviews
  • Articles
  • Past Issues
  • Latest Issue
  • Authors and Artists
  • Latest News
  • Search
  • Menu Menu
January 1, 2005/in Picture Book 5-8 Infant/Junior /by Angie Hill
BfK Rating:
BfK 150 January 2005
Reviewer: Rosemary Stones
ISBN: 978-0744598988
Price: £10.99
Publisher: Dispatch same day for order received before 12 noonGuaranteed packagingNo quibbles returns
Genre: Picture Book
Age Range: 5-8 Infant/Junior
Length: 40pp
Buy the Book

Michael Rosen's Sad Book

Author: Michael RosenIllustrator: Quentin Blake

A children’s book about the nature of grief seems unlikely but Rosen and Blake’s words and pictures work consummately together to express the various states of mind that we call sadness. Sometimes sadness can be overwhelming and Blake uses a grey wash to express the inner heaviness. Sometimes sadness comes upon us and in a sequence of drawings of Rosen walking along a street, Blake shows how inner feelings of  greyness can transform the outside world from a vibrant place full of colour to a barren, grey wilderness.

This book is a communication about the continuing impact of his son Eddie’s death on Rosen. Children who have experienced the death of someone important will be grateful to Rosen for having the courage to acknowledge that he sometimes feels angry with Eddie for dying: ‘I say to myself, “How dare he go and die like that? How dare he make me sad.” He doesn’t say anything because he’s not there any more.’ Death can invoke previous losses and Rosen’s mother is affectionately remembered as well as good times with Eddie, a young man so full of life and promise. But, as Rosen says, ‘sad is anyone. It comes along and finds you.’ That Rosen has found a way to put sadness into words and talk about it in this intensely moving and accessible book will help readers of all ages struggling with their own experiences of loss to find a way to express their feelings.

Share this entry
  • Share on Facebook
  • Share on Twitter
  • Share on WhatsApp
  • Share on Pinterest
  • Share on LinkedIn
  • Share on Reddit
  • Share by Mail
http://booksforkeeps.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/bfklogo.png 0 0 Angie Hill http://booksforkeeps.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/bfklogo.png Angie Hill2005-01-01 17:22:212023-05-04 17:26:30Michael Rosen’s Sad Book

Search for a specific review

Author Search

Search







Generic filters




Filter by Member Types


Book Author

Download BfK Issue Bfk 272 May 2025
Skip to an Issue:

About Us

Launched in 1980, we’ve reviewed hundreds of new children’s books each year and published articles on every aspect of writing for children.

Read More

Follow Us

Latest News

Margaret McDonald and her editors Alice Swan and Ama Badu win the 2025 Branford Boase Award

July 9, 2025

‘The magic of poetry by heart’ Champions of the 2025 National Poetry Speaking Competition Announced

July 8, 2025
IBC

New National Year of Reading launching January 2026

July 8, 2025

Contact Us

Books for Keeps,
30 Winton Avenue,
London,
N11 2AT

Telephone: 0780 789 3369

ISSN: 0143-909X (this is our International Standard Serial Number).

© Copyright 2025 - Books For Keeps | Proudly Built by Lemongrass Media - Web Design Buckinghamshire
Dinosaurs Galore! Detective Dan
Scroll to top