Abstract

This series of six picture books guides children through a range of issues relating to fostering and adoption by focusing on the experiences of a five-year-old girl called Kirsty and her magic doll Billy. Billy talks to Kirsty, explains what is happening to her and explores Kirsty's feelings during her journey from an abusive home to a loving adoptive family.

In the series, Billy says...
· Book 1 "It's not your fault" explores children's feelings when they are living in neglectful families.
· Book 2 "You should be taken care of" covers fears around moving into foster care.
· Book 3 "Foster carers can help" explains what happens when children move into foster care.
· Book 4 "What you think matters" covers courts and the planning process.
· Book 5 "Waiting can be hard" focuses on waiting for an adoptive family.
· Book 6 "Living as a new family takes practice" explores living with an adoptive family.

This set is ideal for use by social workers, foster carers, adoptive parents and counsellors to help children aged 3-8 to understand the fostering and adoption process and to cope with the complex feelings that can arise.

Joanne Alper is Director of Services at Adoptionplus. She is a qualified social worker and play therapist with experience spanning 25 years. Joanne played a leading role in establishing Adoptionplus as a highly regarded voluntary adoption agency. Joanne is also the author of All About Mummies and Daddies and Assessing Adoptive and Foster Parents: Improving Analysis and Understanding of Parenting Capacity, published by Jessica Kingsley Publishers.
...they're beautifully produced and very child friendly.
Dr Miriam Stoppard
...they are very moving and sensitively written.
Jacqueline Wilson
This group of six books is designed to help looked after children have a sense of being understood as they journey through statutory care. It is an excellent resource for school counsellors, foster carers, adoptive parents, psychotherapists working with children, and for adoption support workers and guardians ... The books are an excellent way to support children in life story work and also to remind substitute carers that the children they care for have complicated inner lives that affect them mentally and emotionally... The illustrations in the books are exceptionally good. i was enchanted by the way that the artwork illuminated the emotion and changing moods of the story... This book gives a real sense to the child that someone is trying to understand what they are experiencing. I found the books moving and was impressed that they tackled such a difficult subject in a a very matter-of-fact way... I highly recommend this book for anyone having anything to do with children in care. I think it could save you a lot of work and get to the point with a child very quickly.
Jo North, psychotherapist
BACP Children & Young People
I enjoyed reading them and sharing them with my children and I would recommend them as a tool for talking to children...it allowed us all to talk about our feelings in a safe and non-threatening way.
Review by adoptive mum of 4 children in Adoption Today