#38 Grief, Dogs, & Storytelling: How Relatable Characters Help Children & Adults Cope With Loss with Sally Hill Mills

Can you remember a time that you felt different when you were a child? Either through a learning disability or a loss of a family member or friend, we all have experienced times throughout our lives when we felt different. When you compound the feeling of being different with grief, the emotions can be overwhelming — especially for a child. Through her book, Jimmy, Toughest Dog Ever, author Sally Hill Mills takes us on a special journey through the eyes of Jimmy, who is experiencing both being different and experiencing loss.

This beautiful children’s book helps to translate the tough life lessons that surround grief into a language that is easy for children to understand. It’s about healing from the loss of a pet, a friend, and being able to open your heart again to a new pet or friend. Change is part of life. Grief and loss are part of life. Those experiences help us grow and appreciate the new life (and relationships) born out of such a tragic loss.