We were excited to receive a copy of ‘My Sisters Are Not Good At Wrestling’ by Abimbola Shotade recently. This beautifully illustrated book has been written by a local mum of three, whose husband died when the children were young. The story follows E.J. as he takes a special tour with his dad, which helps him to process and answer some of his questions about death and what happens next.
We asked Abi to share with us her inspiration for the book, and what it means to her and her family. She said:
“Over a year into our grief journey my son, had a dream that his daddy Elijah visited him in the night while we were sleeping and took him on this magical tour of heaven. He recounted everything in the morning to me and it sounded so beautiful. But there were mixed emotions, such as sadness because we wished Elijah was still here but we were also so comforted because we felt the dream was a message saying to us that he was OK and that we will meet again.
This was the inspiration behind the picture book ‘My sisters are not good at wrestling’. E.J share’s his story, starting with his frustrations that his sisters are not good at wrestling, as they prefer to play dress up and E.J is fed up of it. He misses his wrestling partner, daddy.
One evening daddy visits E.J and they go on a special tour that gives E.J insight to where our loved ones go when they die. E.J enjoys this experience and finds it easier to say goodbye accepting the reality of daddy’s death.
It is our heart that those who have suffered the loss of a loved one may find some comfort from reading this story and will grieve and process their grief with hope.
We also share some resources around children who have been bereaved can be supported, as a guide for parents or caregivers. This book can be a great tool to begin discussions around such a difficult topic.”
It is a well-known fact that we love sharing books, here at Guy’s Gift. As Abi says, books can be a fantastic way for children and young people to make some sense of challenging experiences. We use books covering lots of different topics around death and dying, and books which include different beliefs and understandings of what happens when a loved one dies.
For more information about Abi and her book, take a look at her website: https://ineveryseason.co.uk where she also shares podcast posts covering topics around grief and loss.
You can also keep up to date with ‘In Every Season’ on Instagram and YouTube.
