The wonder disappeared when the clouds rolled in.

Little Anna loves playing in her backyard – especially in and amongst the old pear tree. Although one day, when she learns she is sick the wonder and happiness disappears from her life and winter settles in.

It isn’t until spring starts to show it’s colour that Anna joins her pear tree again and enjoys the people and the fruit that gather on it and starts to see that hope will get her through her illness.

A beautiful story about childhood illness and how deeply it can affect young children, Pear of Hope, will show it’s young readers that hope is a vital part to our lives and that when we have hope and support – life can be so much more joyous.

Some children will go through harsh illnesses and Pear of Hope is the perfect book for them to read so that they can get through difficult treatments or painful surgeries. It is also an excellent book to share with children so that they see how hard it can be for those who have to be diagnosed with life threatening illnesses.

Deb Hudson’s illustrations show the reader more than words, adding an element of deeper thought and wonder. They are full of colour to reflect emotion and the texture of the drawings show the natural world in detail.

Teachers can use this book to begin discussions about what hope means for all of us at all times in our lives. This can also be a great book to use if there is a child who has been diagnosed with a long term illness.

You could also use this to link emotions to seasons – great literacy tool!

EK Books really do published some excellent books for those big issues and this story really brings this topic alive, ready for heartfelt discussion.