Note to Grownups

About Author and Illustrator

The Story

In 2022 my husband was diagnosed with cancer. Over the next 8 months we progressed through a journey of tests, treatments, hope and despair. Along this journey, one of the most difficult steps was explaining to our 7-year-old son what was happening.

I chose to use a familiar metaphor of evil (lazy cancerous cells who do not want to do their jobs) vs. good (doctors, chemo, radiation, and immunotherapy). Even at this young age, my son intuitively grasped what I was trying to explain.

This gave us a common language to discuss my husband’s illness and its progression and address most common questions (e.g. What is cancer? Why does cancer happen? Will I get sick? How long does cancer last? What can we do medically to treat it? Etc.).

Besides the science of cancer, I thought that it was important to also address the complex emotional aspect of this disease and everyday symptoms like hair loss, weight loss, lack of appetite or lack of energy.

Though amusing, colorful illustrations I acknowledged both feelings of the adult who is not well as well as the child, who might be confused, angry, sad, etc.

Finally, it was important for me to end this story on a positive note, focusing the conversation on concrete ideas that kids can do to support their loved ones who are battling cancer (e.g. giving hugs to sharing stories). I wanted to make this book colorful, inviting, and accessible and I hope that this will help you navigate your journey.