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The Funeral

ebook
1 of 1 copy available
1 of 1 copy available

A New York Times / New York Public Library Best Illustrated Children's Book
New York Public Library Best Books for Kids
Ezra Jack Keats Award Honor Winner

Norma and her parents are going to her great-uncle Frank's funeral, and Norma is more excited than sad. She is looking forward to playing with her favorite cousin, Ray, but when she arrives at the church, she is confronted with rituals and ideas that have never occurred to her before. While not all questions can be answered, when the day is over Norma is certain of one thing — Uncle Frank would have enjoyed his funeral.

This sensitive and life-affirming story will lead young readers to ask their own questions about life, death and how we remember those who have gone before us.

Key Text Features
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Correlates to the Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts:

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.K.1
With prompting and support, ask and answer questions about key details in a text.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.K.7
With prompting and support, describe the relationship between illustrations and the story in which they appear (e.g., what moment in a story an illustration depicts).

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.2.3
Describe how characters in a story respond to major events and challenges.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.3.7
Explain how specific aspects of a text's illustrations contribute to what is conveyed by the words in a story (e.g., create mood, emphasize aspects of a character or setting)

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  • Reviews

    • Publisher's Weekly

      Starred review from February 12, 2018
      In his first outing as author, Canadian artist James (When the Moon Comes) examines the way the funeral of a distant relative feels to a child. Great-uncle Frank was old when he died, and Norma’s mother is sad (she “put a million kleenexes in her purse and checked her makeup”). Norma isn’t sad, however: she’ll get a day off from school and she’ll see her cousin Ray. Yet she understands that the occasion is somber, and she sits through the long church service patiently. James’s mixed-media spreads make the gravity of the occasion a backdrop for Norma’s liveliness. He paints her with her head deep inside her mother’s purse, breathing in “a mix of toothpaste and makeup and sweet warm leather.” After the service, Norma and Ray turn cartwheels; back inside, Norma sees a photo of Uncle Frank that “smiles right at her.” James’s creation isn’t designed to start a discussion about death. It’s more a story about Norma that happens to involve a funeral, and it traces with a big heart the way she makes sense of this puzzling event. Ages 4–7. Agent: Jackie Kaiser, Westwood Creative Artists.

    • School Library Journal

      Starred review from February 1, 2018

      K-Gr 2-A girl's experience of her great-uncle's memorial service starts as these things characteristically do-with a ringing phone and a mother's tears. When the day arrives, Norma is "practicing her sad face in the mirror of her parents' room. Though she was, in fact, pretty happy." The first clue that the narration will be an honest expression of her feelings (and that possibly she was not close to the older gentleman) appears on the book jacket. The title is painted in two colors: "fun" in yellow, "eral" in blue. For Norma, this is a day without school, an opportunity to see her favorite cousin Ray, and a chance to play in the churchyard-painted in life-affirming green and surrounded by pink trees. There are signs, however, that Norma is not insensitive to the day's meaning. She ponders her cousin's (unanswered) question: "Is Uncle Frank still a person?" A smiling photo of the relative prompts quiet contemplation. James incorporates a variety of page designs and media into his acrylic-and-ink on Masonite compositions, thereby creating richly textured, transforming environments capable of emotional nuance. The cardboard organ with Masonite keys and pipes exudes colorful, swirling sounds. Cut paper caricatures create shadows, adding depth. Dazzling abstract details are paired with evocative language to quietly undergird the spiritual dimension. VERDICT Witnessing the acceptance of varied reactions to death and the elements of memorial will help children prepare for or reflect upon their first funeral. A notable portrayal.-Wendy Lukehart, District of Columbia Public Library

      Copyright 2018 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

    • Kirkus

      February 15, 2018
      A young girl attends a relative's funeral and experiences familial customs of saying goodbye to a loved one.Norma's great-uncle Frank has passed away. While she practices sad faces in the mirror, the girl also feels happy, since she is missing school and will see her favorite cousin, Ray. These contradictory emotions, along with Norma's innocent questions, perfectly capture a child's point of view as the funeral procession winds its way to church and the sermon takes place. Beautiful moments mingle together--the smell of her mother's purse, dust "dancing in beams of light," the freedom of running outdoors. The illustrations, done in acrylic with ink, pencil, and some collage, skillfully represent the characters both physically and emotionally. As Norma considers what's expected of her and how she really feels, the artist is also on an exploratory journey, attempting different compositions, uses of paint, and mixed media. Simpler paintings evolve to include: a 3-D sculpture with expressionist marks; a large, expansive field where the children play; and evocative, haikulike, panel illustrations of Norma and Ray outside. (Both children have straight, black hair and pale complexions.) The purpose of the day, to celebrate and remember Uncle Frank, is realized as Norma authentically makes this connection.Enveloping and original, James' authorial debut offers an honest exploration of a difficult and delicate subject. Exceptional. (Picture book. 4-8)

      COPYRIGHT(2018) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

    • Booklist

      Starred review from February 1, 2018
      Grades K-3 *Starred Review* Norma's going to her uncle Frank's funeral, and while her parents are sad, she's sort of happy, since she gets to skip school and hang out with her FAVORITE cousin, Ray. Over the course of the day, Norma observes the event from a mostly sensory perspectivethe beloved smell of her mother's purse; the dust motes floating through colorful beams of light in the church; the happiness of cartwheeling barefoot through the grass. While it seems like Norma and Ray don't understand what's going on, it is clear from their questions and reactions that they do: Ray asks Norma, Is Uncle Frank still a person? and Norma stops to look wistfully at a photo of Frank before they leave. The thickly painted, pleasantly busy multimedia artwork, incorporating collage and dimensional elements, has a childlike, freewheeling quality that perfectly matches Norma and Ray's guilelessness. It's a pretty accurate depiction of how young children with only a slight understanding of the significance of death experience a funeral, and it's a warm reminder of some of the less somber elementstime with family and loved ones, an opportunity to remember good things about a relative, and a chance to experience the everyday treasures of living. Plenty of picture books about death exist, but in this, James uniquely and playfully captures the particularities of a child's perspective.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2018, American Library Association.)

    • The Horn Book

      January 1, 2019
      When Norma accompanies her parents to her great-uncle Frank's funeral, she's happy to have the day off of school and to see her favorite cousin, Ray. There's neither bibliotherapy nor much in the way of a plot here, but the perspective throughout is authentically childlike. James's painterly ink and acrylic illustrations wonderfully convey the moments and feelings that Norma experiences.

      (Copyright 2019 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

Formats

  • OverDrive Read
  • PDF ebook

Languages

  • English

Levels

  • ATOS Level:3.6
  • Interest Level:K-3(LG)
  • Text Difficulty:2

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