Remembering Mrs. Rossi

By Amy Hest

Book Overview

Mementos from her mother's students help a young girl to grieve in a middle-grade novel by award-winning author Amy Hest. Eight-year-old Annie lives in a sunny apartment in Manhattan with her father,... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0545115884
• ISBN13: 9780545115889
• Release Date: January 2008
• Publisher: Scholastic
• Length: 143 Pages
• Weight: 0.32 lbs.

Customer Reviews

Loved, loved, loved this book

This book evoked many emotions from me ranging from humor to loss to acceptance. This story is about a young girl's journey after the sudden death of her mother. Based on the number of tissues I used while reading this book, I feel it is written from the heart.

Great for Bibliotherapy

I could not put this book down! It is amazing and great for use in a classroom! The author doesn't go into much detail about how exactly Annie's mother died which makes it easy for kids to relate Annie's situation to any feelings of loss they have had. This book would be great as a read-aloud, a classroom set of books, or as bibliotherapy to a small group of students. This book really encourages kids to express their feelings and eases them into doing so as they relate to Annie's journey through her feelings.

Remember This Book

Annie Rossi has just lost her mother to a sudden illness. Nothing is the same, but not everything is different. It feels lonely in the apartment with just Annie and her dad. Annie's mom was a sixth-grade teacher. To help comfort the class and the Rossi family, the kids put together a book with stories, essays, and poems about Mrs. Rossi. Annie and Professor Rossi receive it at an assembly. They read it over and over. Throughout the year following Mrs. Rossi's passing, Annie has all sorts of feelings and wishes. Most of all, she wishes her mom was there. Will the sadness stay forever? REMEMBERING MRS. ROSSI is a wonderful story. Adults are often afraid to talk to children about life's heavier issues, but sad things can still happen. This book offers a gentle approach to the topic of death, especially of loved ones. Annie's voice is so heartfelt and true that readers will feel as though she's in the room telling them how she feels. This is a super choice for children in the middle grades, especially for kids who are suffering from their own loss, as well as those who know a child facing such a tragedy. Life is not fair. Bad things do happen to perfectly nice people. But this is part of life, and coping is a skill that children can begin to understand by looking through Annie's eyes. Reviewed by Christina Wantz Fixemer 01/29/2007