The Moon Child
We are delighted to stock this new coming-of-age storybook from an author who is local to After Alice Ltd.
Laura Cowan, has written a gentle but powerful story about a young girl who is told all about her body's potential by her grandmother. The wise older woman explains that girls are children of the moon, they follow the lunar month and they have a red lake inside them capable of creating life. 'The red lake builds up and releases. Ebbing and flowing like the tides in the ocean.'
"Why do [females] have a red lake Grandma?"
"It is the blood of life. All blood is life. It flows in rivers around our bodies, but we only see it when we hurt ourselves. The blood in the red lake is different. Our bodies release it every month to remind us that we are always growing, always changing."
Informative and honest, this is a careful and thoughtful book. The grandma extends the analogy of the red lake to explain about menopause (the lake dries up when you are older) and how menstruation ceases during pregnancy as the red lake is nourishing the foetus.
The simple charming illustrations do not shy away from the reality of menstruation. The girl is shown grown older towards the end of the book, discovering blood on toilet paper when she begins her period. There is also an earlier illustration of blood stained underwear.
However this is still a gentle introduction towards this topic, that will allow you to prepare younger children for what lies ahead, without alarming them. Boys also feature and this book is ideal for brothers / boys too ('boys are children of the sun, that's why we call them sons').
I haven't come across another book quite like The Moon Child. It is sweet and reassuring, but also provides a powerful message in an age appropriate way.
The author includes conversation starters and helpful suggestions for speaking to children about periods at the end of the book. Laura Cowan is the founder of Girls Rising Movement, empowering girls and their mothers to navigate puberty and menstruation without embarrassment, secrecy or shame.
Moon Child is a great choice for primary school children who are starting to ask questions about menstruation, or what happens to a women's body across different ages.
Paperback.
Number of pages: 42
Book Dimensions: 210 x 210 mm
