Sharing picture books about trauma with young children is not only about offering them the chance to understand difficult issues but also about helping them to cherish what they have and inspiring them to understand that there are
still many beautiful and wonderful things about life, so that in spite of difficulties and problems, there is always a time for love, hope and dreams. Trauma stories, however, cannot always have happy endings, and perhaps this does not matter as long as the stories end on a note of personal satisfaction. As Kokkola (2003:154-155) argues about “closure”:
Traditionally, children’s literature ends with closure: a closed ending which leaves no questions open. We may further distinguish between structural closure and psychological closure. Structural closure brings the plot to a satisfactory conclusion, whereas psychological closure brings the protagonist’s personal conflicts into balance.
To me, the “happy ending” does not exist in a traumatic story for by the nature of the subject matter, there must be something or someone who is sad at the end of the story. However, I do believe that it is crucial for a traumatic story to bring young readers some psychological comfort or hope (Totten and Feinberg, 2001:141). Some traumatic stories, such as Granpa or Charlotte’s Web, end with a situation that is positive and hopeful. Many stories of the Holocaust end with the liberation of the concentration camp or tell of a time of war that has passed and show that life continues. Structural closure can be found in Erika’s story (2004) by Ruth Vander Zee, where Erika survives the concentration camp because her mother throws her out of the train, and a kind lady saves Erika’s life and brings her up. The war ends and Erika has a new family of her own in the end of the story.
In希望的翅膀 (The Wings of Hope) (2000) by郝廣才 (Hao, G. T.), the little boy, Tian-Yu, is buried underground after a serious earthquake in Taiwan. His parents and little sister survived but Tian-Yu did not. But he is happy to be in heaven where he can watch his sister grow up and where he feels he can still love and protect his friends and family even though he is not with them. The final illustration of the picture book (Figure 2.19) shows Tian-Yu smiling and wearing his angel’s wings (Tian-Yu always wanted a pair of angel’s wings). The finality of his death may upset readers but also offer some hope to move on no matter what difficulties they may face in reality. The ending also leaves
room for readers to imagine other interpretations, so even though the story ends with Tian-Yu’s death, the metaphor of the guardian angel achieves psychological closure. There is strength in his smile.
Figure 2.20: Illustration fromThe Wings of Hope(希望的翅膀)
Some traumatic stories may end with an aperture that allows readers’ multiple interpretations. This aperture leaves room for readers to complete stories with possibilities of their own choosing. Raphael and Au (1998:47), who summarise Marilyn Smith’s study of reading aloud to young children, point out that “‘text-to-life’ connections (in which children use their knowledge of a story to understand something in their own lives)” can be regarded as a window. For children from a different background, experience and culture, a book may also work as a window, introducing them to people from another culture, or background and to new experiences. For example,ありがとうニ ャアニャ (Thank you, Kitty) (1995) by Naoko Takahama is a story about Midori, who is trapped in a room after an earthquake. She waits for rescue and tries every way she can think of to make noises so she can be heard. A kitten runs to her and brings her warmth, courage and hope when she has nearly given up. The story ends with the kitten leaving when she realises that someone will rescue Midori. The closure of this story allows for readers’ imaginative interpretation of many possibilities.
These stories encourage readers to think more deeply and to find a way to meet their own psychological, moral or emotional satisfactions. Coles notes:
The whole point of stories is not ‘solutions’ or ‘resolutions’ but a broadening and even a heightening of our struggles—with new protagonists and antagonists introduced, with new sources of concern or apprehension or hope, as one’s mental life accommodates itself to a series of arrivals: guests who have a way of staying, but not necessarily staying put (1989:129).
My research will demonstrate that picture books that focus on traumatic issues give children the opportunity to ask fascinating questions about what the world is like, who they want to be become when they grow up, why human beings sometimes behave so irresponsibly, how people are going to survive adverse situations and what is going to happen at the end of a story (Styles, 1996:44). I will argue that children are capable of understanding the negative side of reality and will find their own ways of coping with their emotions and problems if adults are supportive, considerate and open-minded to their questions. Young children learn to decode and interpret the verbal and visual signs in these kinds of picture books to make sense of distressing events in the world. My research will examine how sharing realistic and traumatic stories with young children can help them to have a better tolerance of fear and pain and to consider possible solutions (Wolfelt, 1983:6-7).