Why Did Daddy Die?: Helping Children Cope with the Loss of a Parent

Alderman, who holds an M.A. in child development and family relations, writes movingly about the grief of children who have lost a parent. She understands the process well: her first husband died of cancer, leaving her to help her two young children deal with their memories, pain and loss. Interested less in outlining a how-to manual than in providing the reassurance that comes from shared experience, Alderman includes an account of her own family's bereavement, which she accompanies with stories of families she met in grief support groups as well as with advice gleaned from her study of the literature on children and grief. Through well-chosen examples, she illustrates how children conceptualize death, learn to comfort one another and cope with the prospect of the surviving parent's dating and remarriage. An afterword recommends books for mourning children and their parents, and for teachers and other professionals. (Oct.)