Book Suggestions for Families When Someone is Seriously Ill

Find reading recommendations for families on how to understand and navigate when someone they care about is seriously ill.

Raising an Emotionally Healthy Child when a Parent is Sick by Paula K. Rauch, MD, and Anna C. Muriel, MD

Based on a Massachusetts General Hospital program, this book covers how you can address children's concerns when a parent is seriously ill, how to determine how children with different temperaments are really feeling and how to draw them out, ways to ensure the child's financial and emotional security and reassure the child that he or she will be taken care of.

What Happens When Someone I Love Has Cancer? By Sara Olsher

This children’s book is for families that want to explain what cancer actually is and how it affects a kid's life. It applies to mothers, fathers, grandparents, siblings, and many types of cancer, including breast cancer, colon cancer, blood cancers such as leukemia, and bone cancers.

Butterfly Kisses and Wishes on Wing by Ellen McVicker

This children's book is a beautifully illustrated resource that can be used to educate and support any child who is facing the cancer of a loved one. The story, as told through the eyes of a little boy as he explains his mom's cancer to other children, lends itself to a simple and clear understanding of cancer.

When Someone Has A Very Serious Illness: Children Can Learn to Cope with Loss and Change by Marge Heegaard

This resource is designed to help children deal with their own serious illness or the illness of someone they care about through drawings and activities. It includes information to help families communicate and evaluate a child’s understanding and feelings about family change, while teaching basic concepts of illness and healthy coping skills.

Let My Colors Out by Courtney Filigenzi

This comforting children’s book walks young children of cancer patients through the range of emotions they’re likely to encounter and provides a message of hope. A young boy uses color to express a range of emotions as his mother undergoes cancer treatment and learns that he does not have to feel guilty about his feelings.

How to Help Children Through a Parent’s Serious Illness by Kathleen McCue

In this supportive and practical guide, a leading child specialist explains the special needs of children whose parents are seriously ill and dying. She then carefully guides caregivers in what they can do to support children in gaining resilience to help them cope and grow across the lifespan.