Help bereaved youngsters find “A Better Place”

Based on her experiences of losing her father, Alyson Marsh has written and illustrated a beautiful book called ‘A Better Place’ to help young people cope with the loss of a parent. The main character, a young girl called Thora begins feeling confused and lost but starts to believe that her daddy has actually gone somewhere special, to “A Better Place” where he can fulfil his dreams and do the things he didn’t get to do while he was alive.

Associate Tutor at the University of Manchester’s Institute of Education, Michael Fitzpatrick, describes the book as “a memory box with stimulus material in storybook form” as there are areas left blank for children to add their own thoughts. He adds, “This is a lovely edition, beautifully designed and sensitively written with a comforting message about grief and loss for younger readers. It offers positive steps to help manage emotional trauma with accompanying activities…. It supports ways of finding ‘a better place’.”

Alyson aims to get the book into every school in the UK to help the large number of children bereaved of a parent, estimated at 111 children every day.

The book costs £9.99 (£15.10 including p&p) and may be purchased from Alyson:

• Website
• Facebook – search for A Better Place / or through Messenger
• Instagram under a_better_place 
• Email: abetterplacebook@gmail.com