Adam Gets Back in the Game

A great book for opening conversations about death, loss, and grief.

For ten-year-old Adam, happiness is being involved in a little of everything, including his favorite thing of all, playing basketball with his best friend Isaiah. But when he falls on a broken bottle, everything must stop for his "big hurt." Later, all that Adam learned in healing from his injured hand will be put to the test when Isaiah dies suddenly in an accident. Along with Adam, children experiencing the loss of a friend or family member can consider the costs of avoiding their pain and come to understand how grieving can help them more fully return to living.

Greg Adams is Program Coordinator for the Center for Good Mourning and Staff Bereavement Support at Arkansas Children's Hospital where he has worked with grieving children and families since 1991. He previously developed "Lessons from Lions: Using children's media to teach about grief and mourning" and writes a grief/loss e-newsletter, "The Mourning News"-both available for anyone at goodmourningcenter.org. Adam Gets Back in the Game is his first children's book.

Paige Mason is an advocate for creativity, imagination, and art education. She graduated from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, where she obtained a bachelor's degree in fine arts with an emphasis in illustration. Paige currently works at a private elementary school ranging from preschool to 4th grade in San Jose, California. After leaving campus, you can find her in the living room, Corner Studio, where she creates art of her own. Storytelling, adolescence, and imagination can be found in Paige's work; children gravitate to her drawings, which also evoke a sense of nostalgia for adults both old and young. The use of thick and thin black lines create uniformity, as splashes of color lend details and rhythm to her illustrations. Her work is derived from her own childhood memories, particularly those of summer time, where nothing really mattered except going outside to swim, getting her hair done, and playing with friends.