Attain My Fathers Words Constructed By Patricia MacLachlan EPub

writes with beautiful spare prose, and the character of Declan O'Brien is someone I would have loved to know, But I just don't know who this book would work for, . . as an adult, I see the loveliness of it, But I can't see a grieving child or any child in particular connecting with these children in fact, I didn't feel much grieving in this book at all.
Everything feels so full of the father through his words that his absence is not a strong presence, and everyone goes about their business of recovering from his death with, I think, completely unrealistic equanimity and peace.


It feels more like the reminiscence of an adult withordecades' distance from the death of a parent, where the memory of the parent's wisdom is louder than the screaming agony of immediate loss, rather than a book centered around grieving children.
As much as I wanted to love it, it just fell flat for me, Siblings fifthgrader Fiona and secondgrader Finn are grappling with a tragedy that has broken their family, As they try to come to terms with it, they realize that what's healing them eventually are words spoken long ago, Words, spoken in the past, that are now coming back through people who they knew do not speak much, but are still trying to heal their broken lives.

And then there are dogs in this one, If you love dogs, if you love words, if you think that most of your healing happens through the most underrated, yet the most powerful method communication and attention then this is a tiny book that you will love too.

Classified as YA, I will also direct you to bookchief 's page on whose recommendation I had read this book, Their review is here.
"I wonder why Finn remembers better than I do,
“Maybe it is because it is safer for you to forget right now,” said Luke,
The truth is that we know the dogs need people, But people need the dogs even more sometimes, To teach people how good they really can be, I call it turnabout. Reading Patricia MacLachlan books is like watching a prima ballerina, She makes her amazing writing talent so look effortless, Her brevity belies her incredible ability to weave a deep and poignant tale with few, well chosen, are beautifully articulated words, In My Father's Words we meet the O'Brien family, Declan, the father is brilliant psychologist who always had kind and gentle words to share, One day he swerves to miss a child in the road and is suddenly and tragically killed, Fiona, her little brother Finn, and their mother are overwhelmed with grief, One of their father's patients, Thomas, asks if he can call Fiona every Monday forminutes and share her father's words with her which continue to offer guidance long after he is gone.
Fiona and Finn take some of Thomas' advice to heart, They find something or someone who has been left alone to helpat the animal shelter, A simple, yet complex story that looks like it was written for younger readers, but don't be fooled by first glance, This will be a meaningful story that older readers can wrap around their heart and explore what it means to heal and honor the lives of those we loved and lost.
A touching story for children, their families, and their pets, as they work through the process of grief,

I loved the way the children, who had recently lost their father, were reminded of him by sayings and songs, It is touching how they had only good memories of his life and existance, i am convinced he was a warm and wonderful father,

This story is built on the love and strength of a dog and his significant human, It is certainly true that we look for support and acceptance from our pets, I believe they need the same sense of security from their owners, What I had never considered before, was whether an animal could consciously provides, this same sense of nurture in return,

As the story progresses we learn very quickly that trust, sound, touch, and emotion are all as strong as words themselves, Father's words and music live on, but the ache of loss is softened only by the protectors of the heart, our pets,

An emotional read for children and adults, Made nme want to read out loud to my own dog,

Thank you HarperChildrens for the ARC, It will be my pleasure to share this touching story, and other works of Patricia MacLachlan, with my learners, This was a bittersweet, cute book, Honestly, I didn't really get some of what was said, and I think it would go over kid's heads to, So, not one of her best, but definitely a sweet one, Super book. This is very insightful. It will help you understand how to deal with a loss, My Father's Words begins with a tragedy, but ends with a heart full of hope, In this little novella, Fiona and Finn O'Brien must learn to cope with their grief, but luckily their friend Luke has a great idea.
Why not volunteer at the local dog shelter They learn that by helping others, they in turn are able to help themselves, I have read many books about death and grieving, but My Father's Words by Patricia MacLachlan The Poet's Dog may just be the best of the bunch.
A beautiful book suitable for any age, In which there is gentle and patient and inspired healing from the sudden loss of a father, husband, neighbor, care provider, A powerful story unfolds in justpages of very large print, showing how to "be there" for others in ways that are true to ourselves, how to help, heal, and forgive.
It is a gentle story, filled with the protagonist's "Father's Words", while at the same time exploring memory and sharing wisdom, Wow. Newbery Medal winner Patricia MacLachlan crafts a moving middle grade novel in her trademark spare and poignant prose about two children who find comfort working at a rescue shelter for dogs as they search for ways to cope after their fathers sudden death.


Declan OBrien always had a gentle word to share, odd phrases he liked to repeat, and songs to sing while he played basketball.
His favorite song was “Dona Nobis Pacem,” “Grant Us Peace, ” His family loved him deeply, and always knew they were loved in return,

But a terrible accident one day changes their lives forever, and Fiona and Finn OBrien are left without a father, Their mother is at a loss, What words are there to guide them through such overwhelming grief At the suggestion of their friend Luke, Fiona and Finn volunteer at an animal rescue shelter where they meet two sweet dogs who are in need of comfort, too.
Perhaps with time, patience, and their fathers gentle words in their hearts, hope will spark once more, This is a book about grieving after a death, I didn't like the author's style of writing with few words, My Father's Words posted on sitelink com and on instagram thebookdarlingblog

Not too long ago, I had ayear old girl come into the bookstore and request "sad books.
" My colleagues and I joked to ourselves that we knew exactly what kind of books she will read as adult: The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah, The Fault in Our Stars by John Green and My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult.


We went on the hunt for her 'sad' books and pulled Where the Red Fern Grows, The Bridge to Terabithia and a few others.
Looking back, I wish this book, My Father's Words, was published to recommend her, But this girl got me thinking what draws us to sad or emotional books

I don't think a child is depressed in wanting these types of books as most of these types of books are required reading in middle and high school.
Rather, she wants to experience something that allows her to safely experience different

ranges of emotion, Isn't this the reason we like to watch sad, sappy Hallmark movies It feels good to cry sometimes, Authors that illicit an emotional response show the reader that bad circumstances can ultimately be overcome, What a wonderful life lesson to add to your child's emotional toolbox!

I selected My Father's Words by Patricia MacLachlan , the Newbury Medalwinning author of Sarah, Plain and Tall, to read over holiday break because I knew my children would like this kind of emotional tale, but with that, I wanted to experience it with them and talk about it during and after.
I'm really glad we did because in reading this book together, it drew us closer to one another with our 'shared experience, '

Based loosely on the author's reallife experiences, the story begins in the most shocking manner, The father, a psychologist who is a very wise father and loving husband, dies in a tragic accident and the family is left to cope with the realization that he is gone.
Side note: my kids and I have a running joke that almost all good books unfortunately begin with someone having a big issue or gulp dying.
Well, three pages in, my daughter remarked that "this should be a good one then, " yikes!

In the throws of grief, the children end up volunteering at a local animal shelter and in helping other creatures, they begin to heal and process what life without their father feels like.
I don't want to give it all away so if you want to read more about the plot line, visit Goodreads here, This book was published October,so it's fairly new,

This short little novel it took us abouthours to read together is a tribute to the power of a parent's love and could be a manual for those processing grief, especially children.
This would be an excellent book for a school library, guidance counselor or child's psychologist to keep onhand, Please pickup this book and read it with your child, I promise it will be time wellspent together, .