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CHILDREN'S
BIBLIOGRAPHY
June
2002
Joanne
Riebschleger, Ph.D., MSW
Central
Michigan University
810 Terrace Drive
Houghton Lake, MI 48629
(989)
422-6084
joanner@i2k.com
Note:
This listing of materials for children and young teens
of families with people with psychiatric disorders has been updated:
1) to include recently developed materials; and 2) to include
only materials that have some potential value for helping children
and young teens. Thus I used professional judgment about what
to include based on my years of experience as a child and family
therapist.
The materials are listed by date of publication with the most
recent sources listed first. Some of the materials are out of
print but are still available on line at used/out of print book
listings. Others may be found within public/college library systems
and within the resources of advocacy organizations.
The
primary emphasis of the materials listed below is on children
as non-ill family members. Please note that other resources exist
that emphasize children as consumers, or people with serious mental
illness.
This
publication is made possible through sponsorship by:
The Mental Health Association in New York State, Inc. and
Bristol-Myers Squibb Company
Mental
Health Association in New York State, Inc.
194 Washington Ave. Suite 415
Albany, NY 12210
Phone: (518) 434-0439 Fax: (518) 427-8676
Toll free 1-800-766-6177
www.mhanys.org
Catch a Falling Star by Gayle Glass. Illustrated by Coral
Nault (About 2001). Self published. Available through website:
www.iristhedragon.com
Iris the Dragon explains mental illness to a young boy named Fish.
What’s Wrong with Nick? by Carrier Lyn Torney (About
2001). Available from Friend of Nick’s, P.O. Box 972, Claremont,
NH 03743.
A mother explains an older boy’s schizophrenia to her young
son.
The Face at the Window by Regina Hanson. Illustrated by
Linda Saport (1997). Published by Clarion Books.
Young Dora lives in Jamaica. She learns not to be afraid of her
neighbor, a lady who has mental illness.
Sad Days, Glad Days: A Story about Depression by Dewitt
Hamilton. Illustrations by Gail Owens (1995). Published by Albert
Whitman & Co, Morton Grove, IL.
A young Hispanic/Latino child learns to understand a mother’s
changing moods within the metaphor of changing colors.
My Mom is Different by Deborah Sessions (1994). Published
by Sidran Press. A young boy talks about living with a mother
with multiple personality disorder.
It Won’t Last Forever: A Child’s Book about Living
with a Depressed Parent by Doris Sanford (1993). Multnomah
Publishers.
An elementary age girl has a mother who develops and explains
severe depression.
My Sister Then and Now by Virginia L. Kroll. (1992). Published
by Caroldrhoda Books, Minneapolis, MN.
A girl describes events over time as her older sister develops
psychosis.
Wish
Upon a Star: A Story for Children with a Parent Who is Mentally
Ill by Pamela L. Laskin & Addie Alexander Moskowitz. Illustrated
by Margo Lemieuz. (1991). Address of publisher is 19 Union Square
West, New York, New York 10013.
A young child with a mother with a psychiatric disability talks
about mother’s mental illness with a father and grandmother.
Is Dad Crazy? (An Explanation of Schizophrenia for Children)
by Jan Liddicut. Illustrations by Linda McKay (1989). Published
by the Schizophrenia Australia Foundation, 211 Chapel Street,
Prahran, 3181 Victoria, Australia.
A child’s view of living with a father’s schizophrenia.
Uncle Melvin by Daniel Pinkwater (1989). Published by MacMillian.
Young Charles really likes his Uncle Melvin who has mental illness
and lives in a residential program.
Coloring Book:
Helping Each Other by Betsey Douglas MacDonald. Published
by the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill, 2101 Wilson Blvd.,
Suite 302, Arlington, VA 22201. No date of publication, perhaps
1991.
Four children have relatives with epilepsy, diabetes, high blood
pressure or a mental illness. The four health conditions are treated
with “medication, therapy, and understanding.”
Back
to Table of Contents
Joe’s Diary: A Sane Guide for Young People by SANE
in Australia. Information available at organizational website:
www.sane.org
Twelve year old Joe’s diary reflects on his life with a
mother with schizophrenia.
SANE Guide for Brothers and Sisters by SANE in Australia.
Information available at organizational website: www.sane.org
Information and advice for young siblings of people with serious
mental illnesses.
Back
to Table of Contents
Daddy Doesn’t Have to Be a Giant Anymore by Jane
R. Thomas (1996). Published by Clarion Books.
An easy reader illustrated book that describes a young girl whose
father enters treatment for mood swings and alcohol dependence.
Ash by Lisa Rowe Fraustino. Publisher is Orchard Books
Fifteen year old Wes’ dairy describes the onset of his older
brother’s schizophrenia.
Please Don’t Cry Mom by Helen Denboer. Illustrated
by Janice G. Goldstein (1993). Lerner Publishing Group.
An easy reader illustrated book about an African-American boy’s
experiences with his mother’s depression.
Tell Me a Story, Paint Me the Sun: When a Girl Feels Ignored
by Her Father by Roberta Chaplan. Illustrated by Michael Chesworth
(1991). Published by the American Psychological Association.
An easy reader illustrated book about an elementary age girl whose
father loses his job which appears to lead to the father’s
depression and drinking.
The Girl With the Crazy Brother by Betty Hyland (1987).
Published by Franklin Watts, 387 Park Avenue South, New York,
NY 10016.
Junior high age Dana has an older brother whose behavior changes
completely after he begins to hear voices.
The Keeper by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor (1986). Published
by Atheneum, New York, NY.
High school age Nick becomes the caretaker for his father who
develops suicidal, delusional, and paranoid behaviors.
The
Night Birds by Tormod Haugen, translated from Norwegian by
Sheila LaFarge, (1982). A Merloyd Lawrence Book, Delacorte Press,
Seymour Lawrence, Dag Hammarskjold Plaza, New York, NY 10017.
This book won book awards. An eight year old Norwegian boy learns
to deal with his father’s psychiatric disability one day
at a time.
Toby Lived Here by Hilma Wolitzer (1978). Published by
Farrar, Straus & Giroux, New York, New York.
Twelve year old Toby lives in foster care following the psychiatric
hospitalization of her mother.
Back
to Table of Contents
Know About Mental Illness by Margaret O. Hyde & Elizabeth
H. Forsyth (1996). Published by Walker & Company.
A book for young readers that explains mental illnesses and stigma/stereotypes.
Mad House: Growing Up in the Shadow of Mentally Ill Siblings
by Clea Simon (1997). Doubleday, New York.
An adult talks about growing up with her siblings’ mental
illnesses.
Out of the Jungle: A Survival Guide with a Compass by Constance
Foster (1994). Dilligaf Publishing.
A short book with vignettes for teens living with a relative’s
mental illness.
Nothing to Be Ashamed of: Growing Up with Mental Illness in
Your Family by Sherry H. Dinner (1989). Published by Lothrop,
Lee, and Shepard Books, New York, NY. A mental health professional
speaks to junior high and high school age children about dealing
with a family member’s mental illness.
Understanding
Mental Illness: For Teens Who Care about Someone with Mental Illness
by Julie Tallard Johnson (1989). Published by Lerner Publications
Company, Minneapolis, Minnesota.
A wealth of information for teenagers about living with a person
who has a psychiatric disability.
A
Family Affair by the Advancement of Psychiatry (1986). Brunner/Mazel,
New York, NY.
A “Dear Abby” introduction to the experiences of parents,
spouses, siblings, and children of people with psychiatric disabilities.
Back
to Table of Contents
www.mhanys.org
The website for the Mental Health Association in New York State
has fact sheets, a great links page, and a variety of other useful
information, including this bibliography.
www.nmha.org
The website for the National Mental Health Association provides
brochures, fact sheets, self-help and advocacy materials and referrals
for state specific resources.
www.state.sc.us/dmh/schoolbased/thingstoknow.htm
Things to know if someone in your family has a mental illness.
A web page for children living with a relative’s mental
illness.
www.ftnys.org/
Families Together in NYS, Inc. is a parent-run organization that
offers help to parents with children that have special needs.
Back
to Table of Contents
Someone in My Family Has a Mental Illness by Lyne Brindamour
(About 2001). Developed for Family Services of the North Shore
in North Vancouver, BC, Canada. Available for $10 Canadian from
Family Services of the North Shore, 101-255 West 1st Street, North
Vancouver, BC, Canada V7M3G8
Stick drawing workbook provides a format for discussion about
children’s experiences with mental illness.
Bart
Speaks Out: Breaking the Silence on Suicide by Linda E. Goldman
(1998). Published by Manson Western Corporation.
A dog named Bart talks about his feelings after his owner commits
suicide. Children are asked to write, draw, or insert a photograph
within each part of the book.
Our Special Dad: An Interactive Story Book about Mental Illness,
&
Our Special Mom: An Interactive Story Book about Mental Illness
By Tootsie Sobkiewicz. Illustrated by John and Steve Sobkiewicz
(1996). Self published
Available from Children of Mentally Ill Parents, Box 7272, Pittsburgh,
PA 15213
A young girl and a young boy narrate their experiences in living
with the mental illness of a mother or father.
Back
to Table of Contents
Iris the Dragon Puppet Skit set. Available at www.iristhedragon.com
Mailing address is Iris the Dragon, Inc., Otter Creek, 667 Highway
15, Lombardy, Ontario, K06 1L0, Fax is 613-283-9587. Phone is
613-284-2049. Cost is $39.95 US.
A bound skit manual, CD, and one copy of “Catch a Falling
Star” completes this set of educational materials. The manual
has suggestions for creating sets and puppets. The purpose is
to educate children about mental illness and to change attitudes
toward stigma associated with mental illness.
Good Days & Bad Days: A set by Joanne Riebschleger.
Illustrated by Laura Riebschleger (1997). Self-published; limited
sets available. Set contains a storybook, child workbook, and
guide for professionals and family members who live and work with
children living with a family member who has a serious mental
illness. The story of two young girls whose mother experiences
severe depression. $70.00/set. For information, contact Joanne
Riebschleger, 810 Terrace Drive, Houghton Lake, MI 48629.
An Educational Materials set, including: My Mom Still Loves
Me (VHS tape) and Good Weather or Not (Picture Story Book).
Approximately 1991. Available from Turtle Creek Valley MH/MR staff,
Puppeteer is Susan Linn, Homestead, PA. Available for approximately
$300 from National Council of CMH Centers, 12300 Twinbrook Pathway,
Suite 320, Rockville, Maryland. Phone is 301-984-6200. Storybook
is written by Fred Rogers with Hedda Bluestone Sharapan. Turtle
Creek also has a resource manual to suggest ways professionals
can use the materials to help children.
A twenty-minute video shows puppet animals trying to deal with
a mother’s psychiatric hospitalization. The picture storybook
talks about a child’s feelings about his father’s
mental illness.
Breaking
the Silence: Teaching the Next Generation About Mental Illness
in their classes. http://www.nami.org/youth/000831j.html
NAMI Queens/Nassau Education Committee developed this attractive,
easy-to use educational package for three grade levels using stories
to humanize serious mental illness and teach that these illnesses
are no-fault brain disorders. In the middle school package, a
popular anti-stigma game called The Brain Game reinforces the
information and messages the kids are learning. Each educational
package also includes posters listing the warning signs of mental
illness, cross-cultural activities, annotated bibliographies,
Web sites, and resource organizations that students can use to
explore this and related topics in greater depth. "Breaking
the Silence" is available for upper elementary schools, middle
schools, and high schools. It costs $12.50 for each package designed
for these grade levels or $35 for all three, plus postage and
handling. Copies can be ordered by calling NAMI-Queens/Nassau
at 516-326-0797 or via email BTSlessonplans@aol.com
Children's
Mental Health Tool Kit http://mhanys.org/programs/cmhp/toolkit/2007%20CMH%20Week%20Toolkit.pdf
This
toolkit was developed for Children's Mental Health Week 2007.
We hope you will find this information useful year-round.
Back
to Table of Contents
For
further information, contact Lorraine McMullin at MHANYS at (518)
434-0439 ext. 211, or e-mail pwpd@mhanys.org
