More children’s books about violent events like shootings

This school year, some students in the United States have more to worry about than finishing all their homework. The demand for children’s books about traumatic events such as school shootings.

Sales of children’s books on violence, pain, and difficult emotions increased for nine consecutive years. Nearly six million copies of these books were sold in 2021. That’s more than double the amount sold in 2012. These numbers come from NPD Book Scan, which looks at print book sales in the United States.

Officials say mental health issues such as anxiety and the Depression increased sharply among young Americans. Educators and other proponents say children’s books can help young people deal with these issues.

Kristine Enderle is editorial director of Magination Press, the children’s publishing division of the American Psychology Association. She said it may seem like “second nature” to try to protect children from tragic events in the news. But it is “proving difficult to avoid major societal problems,” Enderle said.

“Children face these problems and challenges in their daily lives,” she added.

The book I’m not afraid…I’m ready was first published in 2014. In the story, a teacher shows children what to do when a “dangerous person” is in their school. The book has been reprinted several times to meet demand after the mass shooting at a Texas elementary school earlier this year.

Barnes & Noble is a national bookseller. He said bookstores across the country are seeing interest in certain books rise and fall based on local and national events.

Some newer books deal directly with gun violence in the real world.

Josephine, the 7-year-old daughter of Michele Gay, was killed in the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in 2012. Gay turned to children’s books to help her two surviving daughters. A picture book she read to them was The Anthill Disaster. The story speaks of a ant This is fear to return to school after its destruction.

Gay, who co-founded the non-profit group Safe and Sound Schools, said The Anthill Disaster and other books were a source of comfort for his two daughters.

Experts say parents should make sure books about trauma have the support of mental health professionals.

Aryeh Sova is a Chicago-based psychologist. He works with children who attended the July 4 parade outside Chicago where seven people were killed in a mass shooting. He said a child who asks many questions about a traumatic event may feel anxious or think about it a lot.

“If it comes from the child’s need, then books could be a great way for children to learn and read with their parents and revise it on their own and process it at their own pace…”, Sova said.

But bringing up violence when a child isn’t concerned about it could unnecessarily increase their anxiety, Sova added.

In her graphic novel Numb by it, writer Kindra Neely describes the 2015 shooting at Umpqua Community College in Oregon, which she survived. She also describes her efforts to heal after the event, even as mass shootings continued to occur across the country.

Little, Brown Books for Young Readers published Neely’s book. Andrea Colvin is the editorial director of the publishing house. She said that at first she was shocked when Neely suggested the idea for the book.

“I had to remember that, yeah, that’s what our stories are like now,” Colvin said. “That’s what young people have been through.”

I am Ashley Thompson.

The Associated Press reported this story. Ashley Thompson adapted it for VOA Learning English.

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words in this story

traumatic –adj. make someone very upset in a way that can lead to serious problems

pain -not. deep sadness, especially when someone dies

the Depression -not. a state of being deeply sad which can be a serious medical condition

challenge -not. say something might not be or might be true; Argue

ant -not. a small insect that organizes itself into a social group

fear –adj. feel fear

graphic novel -not. a picture book that usually deals with a serious or disturbing subject