October is National Mental Health Month which encourages us all to think about our mental health and wellbeing.
‘My Dad built me the best and wackiest cubby ever’ is a heart-warming children’s book to help kids explore the topic of mental health.
‘My Dad built me the best and wackiest cubby ever’ is a story about a child and father navigating the dad’s mental health struggles, and was inspired by Monika’s own lived experience. Monika, who had to explain to her young children the strange and sometimes scary behaviour they were witnessing in family members with poor mental health, set about writing the book as a way for young children to explore mental illness and mental health, and alleviate the fear and stigma that often comes with it.
For parents and carers, the book provides guidance on how to talk to children about mental health, and for kids, it offers a simple way for them to learn about the subject.
Told through the eyes of a child, the book tells the touching story of a child and father setting out to build a cubbyhouse under streaming sunshine, until clouds snake in on a hazing horizon, a storm brews and finally breaks into pouring rains and eventually subsides. All the while, the cubby grows wackier… This is all a metaphor for the father’s mental ill health that gently aligns with the building of the cubby, and changing emotions and weather.
Th illustrations by Kymba Burrows are lovely and compliment the story perfectly. The chapter book is accompanied by resources for teachers, carers and families to draw upon, and is available in full-colour or black and white, as a paperback or e-book.
This book is ideal for children 5-12 years and offers a simple way for kids learn about mental health. The book can be purchased via Amazon, Booktopia, Barnes & Noble and other e-retailers or direct from Monika School at www.monika.com/monika-schott for $25 (colour paperback) or $25 (black and white).
