My Friend, Loonie

Praise

Loss is loss, no matter how buoyant the friend. . . . Respect for children’s sadness and loss is exemplified beautifully in this tactful take on grief and its recovery.
—Kirkus Reviews

Mixed-media illustrations employ changing tones to emphasize the girl’s feelings. . . the story expresses emotion in a way that children may recognize and understand.
—Booklist

Styling gives the little girl ownership of her narrative and the depictions of her feelings—joy at activities with Loonie, sorrow at its absence, and the eventual glimmer of hope—in corresponding vivid or desaturated hues.
—The Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books

A big, bright yellow balloon represents beats of friendship and mourning in LaCour’s tender, well-paced tale. . . . The pages capture the very real emotional weight that children can attach to inanimate objects in this gentle introduction to loss.
—Publishers Weekly

A very gentle tale of friendship made and lost and its lingering impact. . . . Children will understand the emotional journey of the protagonist and have stories of connections made and lost ready to share by the end of this charming and heartfelt tale.
—School Library Journal