"Owen had a fuzzy yellow blanket . . . . He loved it with all his heart."
"Fuzzy goes where I go."
"Fuzzy likes what I like."
"He carried it.
And wore it.
And dragged it.
He sucked it.
And hugged it.
And twisted it."
You can see the close connection from these quotes.
The crisis is brought on when Owen announces, "I have to bring Fuzzy [no longer literally so] to school." What to do?
If you are a first-time parent, this book will suggest a solution that almost all parents rely on (or a variant thereof). As such, it is a great gift to parents and children.
The book was honored by Caldecott for its illustrations which rely on bright watercolor paints and black pen outlines. Owen and the other characters in the book are mice, and they have a visual sweetness that helps take the anxiety out of the book's subject. If the characters were humans, the book could feel threatening to the child who isn't ready to give up the blanket or other security object.
I suggest that you also ask your child what you can do to help make new situations feel more comfortable. The process of becoming more separate from home and parents is a difficult one. Although almost everyone will make it, there's no reason why the transition has to be a harsh and unpleasant one.
Provide an inner sense of security in all the loving ways you know!
