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Explaining a serious illness to most people can present a challenge. They probably don’t know the medical vocabulary. They’re scared about what’s going to happen. They probably looked up their symptoms on the internet and want to argue about the diagnosis.
Now imagine you have to do the same thing for a child. Can you say challenge times 10? All those same issues (maybe not the internet thing) magnified and amplified through the lens of childhood fears and understanding. Add in to the mix the parents and it can raise it up another notch.
Brian Wu attempts to bridge this gap with his series of Storybook Illustrated Guides. This is a series of children’s books aimed at helping to explain childhood illnesses in a way that kids will understand.
I was given the chance to review Estelle’s Winning Spirit, The Storybook Illustrated Guide to Type 1 Diabetes. The story starts off with Estelle’s big soccer game. It does a good job of explaining how some common symptoms can be overlooked as just common jitters and how easy it can be to overlook something that can be serious. Even after she faints during the game, Estelle and her parents continue to ignore the warning signs. When it finally gets to the point it can no longer be ignored and Estelle ends up in the hospital, I found myself wondering where this was going. Fortunately it all works out.
The book does a good job of walking a layperson through the initial warning signs and symptoms. It also does a good job of waking you up to the very real dangers that come with ignoring symptoms and not talking about it, but in a safe environment. If there is one downside to the book I read, it would be that it needs to be proofread one more time. The doctor in the book is referred to as he and she several times (FYI she’s a she).
Overall, this seems to be a great addition to what looks to be a promising series. As the parent of a 4 year old I do my best to assess every situation and make the best choices when it comes to my little one but there is always room for “error” and any new information that I am able to obtain about such important topics is always a welcomed and added bonus. I look forward to reading Brian Wu’s other Storybook Illustrated Guides.
To pick up a copy of Estelle’s Winning Spirit, The Storybook Illustrated Guide to Type 1 Diabetes by Brian Wu click HERE.
Disclosure: I received a free eBook copy of Brian Wu’s book to facilitate this review. Regardless, all opinions expressed are 100% my own.
