Dealing With Terminal Illness in the Family (Focus on Family Matters)

Discusses what may happen when a family member becomes terminally ill and how to cope with this situation.

Grade 6-9-Wagner uses Elizabeth Kobler-Ross's five stages of grief as a framework for discussion. She gives examples of how a death in the family can change teens' lives and counsels on the use of coping skills during a loved one's illness and in facing the realities of the situation. Spending time together, sharing feelings, expressing love, having honest and open discussions, including conversations about death and final arrangements, are suggested. Those left behind are encouraged to continue to live their lives, but not to repress their grief. This title is a patchwork of current popular thinking and is loaded with aphorisms, which lend an air of insubstantiality. Jill Krementz's How It Feels When a Parent Dies (Knopf, 1988) has powerful essays and photos. Earl A. Grollman's Straight Talk about Death for Teenagers (Beacon, 1993) stresses the dangers of unexpressed grief and is a standard on the subject.
Libby K. White, Jewish Vocational Services, Baltimore, MD
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.