Llama Llama author makes kids’ world less scary #parenting #elemed #edchat #literacy

For New York Times best-selling author/illustrator Anna Dewdney, her work is all about “the power of the book for the child.” She is frequently contacted by parents who share how her books helped their children through a divorce, an accident, or the illness of a family member. One family wrote to say that when their child died of cancer they buried one of Dewdney’s books with him because the story meant so much to him.

With that kind of power, Dewdney takes her job seriously. “I was an anxious child and I’m an anxious adult,” she says. “My books are an expression of my experience.” Dewdney remembers what it felt like to be very little. What it was like to go to school for the first time or how scary it felt to fall asleep by yourself in a big room. “The world can be overwhelming, but with love and support it’s not really that bad,” she says. “The theme of all my books is relationships make the world less scary.” More…