Loneliness and Making Friends

Learning to make friends is a crucial part of their development for children of six years and upwards and a successful (or unsuccessful) outcome of this process can impact hugely on an individual's notion of self worth and ability to form relationship. Many children find making friends difficult and adult help in negotiating this delicate and subtle process is often needed.

This attractively designed and warmly presented picture book focuses on four primary school age children who are friends (one black or mixed race, one Asian and two white - shown in photographs) who discuss aspects of friendship with each other. The book divides into section called Feeling Lonely, Why Friends are Important, Making Friends are Important, Making Friends, Different Friendships, Difficult Times, and Working at Friendships. Cartoon strips and speech balloons together with a simple text amplify the particular area under discussion.

Practical tips are included ('The best way to make friends is to be friendly, and to be yourself!') and the book also covers such difficult subjects as accepting difference, trying to buy friendship, risking rejection and feeling left out. A final discussion spread called Don't Forget has the four friends reiterating and reinforcing the key messages from their points of view.

Parents, teachers and others will find in this sensitively written and accessible picture book an invaluable way to initiate discussion to which children can safely contribute their own experiences and problems, secure in the realisation that other children have friendship difficulties too.