I was impressed with the incredibly wise and sensitive way that The Hare-Shaped Hole by John Dougherty explained loss and healing in a way that young children can understand. Loss and grief can come from losing a friend or family member through death but also through distance or even disagreement. Dougherty does not specify how the loved one was lost, making this book helpful and comforting for children experiencing loss in a number of circumstances from a runaway pet to the death of a close family member. This book will be in my library's next book order. It fills a real need in our collection.

The Hare-Shaped Hole by John Dougherty is a beautiful new release that you will want to add to your bibliotherapy collection. This lyrical story about grief and loss is gentle, honest, and thought-provoking. The illustrations perfectly complement the themes. “Hertle and Bertle were always a pair, though one was a turtle and one was a hare. They were utterly buddies, and best friends forever, and whenever you looked, you would find them together... until quite unexpectedly... the end came.” The story is relatable but also leaves room for the reader to make personal connections and engage in processing.

From start to finish this book is absolutely beautiful! Everything from the illustrations to the story itself are just amazing! The emotions that I felt while reading were a bit of a roller coaster, which is not something that you hear a lot with picture books. The incredible friendship at the beginning was beautiful and so incredibly uplifting, and the loss was so very profound. Unfortunately, that is exactly what grief is... Profound.

As a librarian, I see many patrons looking for books on the topic of grief. I think this book would be the perfect addition to our collection. There aren't a ton of well-written kids books that stay true to the raw emotion of loss, but this is it! Thank you, Mr. Dougherty, for not shying away from difficult topics and for realizing that children also need these types of books!

🧚🏻Thank you so much to NetGalley, Quarto Publishing Group, and author John Dougherty for providing me with a free advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an electronic copy to read in exchange for an honest review.

I did not expect to cry when I read this. What a gut punch - but so well done. How do we explain to children when someone important to them is no longer there? This explains the complicated emotions that can happen in these situations. I love how the illustrations compliment the narrative. This is such an important book to help children with the loss of a loved one, be it from death, moving, or for unknown reasons. It broke my heart but I will still definitely have a copy available to share with my students and children as needed.

"The Hare-Shaped Hole" is a beautiful and really touching picture book about friendship, loss and grief. It does a great job handling these topics, and teaching how to deal with those.

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This book starts with a hare and a turtle who are friends for life, but one day the hare disappears, leaving at her place a hare-shaped hole. The turtle misses her very much and doesn't know how to make the hole go away. Eventually, he learns to process his sorrow, beginning to fill the hole with lovely memories.

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This definitely was a beautiful book that I think could be important for kids to read--it can also be a good way to talk about losing someone because the moved away, or after an argument, for instance, not necessarily after they died.

The rhymes and bright illustrations both make it compelling and enjoyable to read as well.

This sweet little book gently teaches young children how to cope with loss.

A tortoise and a hare are best friends who do everything together. They truly enjoy each other’s company and the adventures they have together. But one day, the hare isn’t there. All the tortoise can see is a hare shaped hole. Eventually a kind bear comes along and encourages the tortoise to think about the memories they had together, and eventually the tortoise is able to adjust to the loss of their friend.

These are important lessons for all of us, and a kind and gentle story that will certainly help a child grieve any kind of loss. Personally, I wasn’t wild about the rhyming story but I suspect that the style would appeal to children.

I received this book as an ARC from the publisher and NetGalley.

This picture book has beautiful illustrations and a unique approach to the topic of grief. As it begins, it shows a turtle and a hare enjoying life together, and the author describes why they're such special friends. This way, when the hare is suddenly gone, you can feel the turtle's sadness. The author never explains what happened to the hare, but most readers will assume that it's an unexpected death.

As the turtle mourns, there is a "hare-shaped hole" next to him wherever he goes. A bear comforts him by sharing some truths about grief and loss, and encourages him to fill that empty, dark, hare-shaped hole with all of his beautiful memories. The turtle recalls his wonderful friendship, and the hole fills with beautiful light and swirls of color.

This book has lovely illustrations, and the story is sweet and sympathetic. However, I believe that this will appeal to adults much more than it does to children. The level of metaphor and symbolism here may confuse young children, and the hare's sudden disappearance may provoke anxiety for some kids, causing them to worry that someone special in their life will suddenly vanish.

I appreciate the author's attempt at versatility, writing a story that fits with death, the end of a friendship, or a friend moving away, but because it's unclear what happened to the hare, this may create new questions and fears for children, compared to a book that explains the reality of death or talks a child through the end of a friendship.

I would recommend this book to adults who are mourning the loss of a loved one, since they will likely appreciate the cute artwork and the sweet message about carrying their memories with them. When it comes to children, it's a matter of discretion, because some kids may find this helpful, while others may get confused about whether the hare is really gone or not, and may develop new fears based on the story. I would strongly encourage parents to only read this with a child who has already lost someone, and to provide individualized guidance as they read.

Heartbreakingly beautiful story about loss, grieving and healing. John Dougherty did such a beautiful job at explaining the complex journey of losing someone who means the world to you, and slowly finding peace and happiness in memories that stay behind.

The illustrations in this book are a wonderful addition to the story.

A beautiful picture book about grief - loved the message that it is OK to feel sad rather than telling someone to move past it. A wonderful and gentle take on keeping memories even when you have to say goodbye to someone. Would recommend for a young reader going through loss to be read with their parent. Thank you for the chance to read early!

What a wonderful story, despite the heartbreaking theme. A title to add to any school's collection , together with titles such as Badger's Parting Gift. It really melts the heart of the reader.

Wow. Beautiful. This is a fantastic story about friendship and grief. Quite profound—it actually brought tears to my eyes, which I don't think has ever happened to me with a children's book.

Great rhyme scheme, lovely illustrations, and a poignant story. Although the situation is sad, the story is uplifting. This is an important teaching tool for loss and grief and a heartfelt reminder about the importance of friendship.

A lovely picture book about grief. The illustrations are beautiful, with lots of little details, especially in the depictions of the memories.

I got this on Netgalley in exchange for an honest review!

This was such a good picture-book about how grief leaves such a hole inside of us where the person used to be! I really enjoyed the storytelling and thought it did a good job at explaining how we do not get rid of grief, but instead have these bittersweet memories we treasure. Definitely recommend this one!

I received an electronic ARC from Quarto Publishing Group – Frances Lincoln Children's Books through NetGalley.
A tender story of loss. Bertle and Hertle were close friends who did everything together. Then, suddenly, Hertle was gone and the only thing left was a hare-shaped hole that stayed beside Bertle. Dougherty takes younger readers through the grief process in a manner they will relate with. The tender language used will reassure readers and open dialogue for situations they may face. I appreciate how gentle Gerda the bear is with Hertle. The advice she gives helps in all loss types. The last page is a powerful illustration to capture how memories and loss stay with you for a long time. Families can use this book to open dialogue and share memories.

The Hare-Shaped Hole is a wonderful picture book about loss and grief. When someone we love dies they leave an empty space behind. A constant reminder that someone is missing. Not knowing what to do with this feeling, sadness can quickly become depression. Working through grief is always difficult, but with the help of others, we can fill the emptiness with memories and take these with us wherever we go.

This picture book is a great tool for parents and caregivers to bridge the challenging topic of loss and grief.

The Hare-Shaped Hole is a glorious picture book filled with detailed, bright illustrations by
Hertle Hare and Bertle Turtle are best friends, they do everything together until one day Hurtle disappears and ih ner place is a hare shaped hole. Bertle tries to reason with the hole to get Hurtle back but to no avail, even when he gets angry she doesn't reappear. A bear called Gerda helps Bertle through his grief and its the conversations they have are incredibly powerful
The text rhymes and it could be read by stand-alone, confident readers from six up. However, using this as a class read or a shared-at-home read is how you would get the most out of the book as it opens itself to some important discussions.
How do we manage loss whether that's death or someone leaving us to move onto pastures new?

It's a wonderful book and one all teachers should have in their class.

This is story of loss and the hole it leaves behind. It is also about filling the hole with memories. It goes through the stages of grief in a simple way. It also shows that you’re not alone when losing someone. This would be a great book to read to a child after a loss. I loved the illustrations, especially the ones at the end!

This beautifully illustrated picture book explores the loss of a friend in a gentle but honest way - exploring and validating the range of emotions and the importance of memories Would be really useful as a conversation starter.

A tale of friendship and loss. A good book for a child that is mourning a friendship lost or a death.

The matt illustrations in The Hare-Shaped Hole by by John Dougherty shows that life will have its ups and downs. There is a hare (Hertle) and a tortoise (Bertle) who are the best of friends (there isn't the competition of that well know fable). Their adventures and every day activities are indicative of common interests and compromise, the sign of a good relationship. One day Hertle is missing and it's not clear why but it is evident that she won't be returning.

Bertle to be expected goes through all the known stages of grief. Bewilderment at the absence, anger over the loss, and resignation of the reality, leaving only bittersweet tang of memories.

This is a lovely book that demonstrates that we will all experience loss, will experience a variety of feelings as we learn to deal with the absence. But with time and help from others will overcome grief and remember what we had with fondness. There is the indication that good advice and support can come from others who have experienced the same.

The rhyming words and expression filled characters highlighted the highs and lows of friendship, ably demonstrating that grief is just love with no place to go.

Truly a thoughtful tale that is aimed at the younger readers, however is eminently suitable for all those grieving or have lost something precious.

My thanks to NetGalley, the author and illustrator for this fantastic book which I thoroughly enjoyed reading.