Soon after visiting her mother at the hospital, a young girl and her father get the news that her mother has died. Both the blur of activity and the grief that follow are the subject of this spare, straightforward first-person narrative. Once everything else gets back to normal, grief begins to follow the girl, a dark space around her. Eventually, it settles into one of her mother's old sweaters that the girl begins to wear. Her dad tells her that the grief "is like Mom's sweater. The sweater stays the same size but I will eventually grow into it. The grief may stay the same size. But my world will grow bigger around it." It's an apt and hopeful metaphor in a picture book distinct for the directness with which it deals with death, grieving, loss and healing. Stylized illustrations show the girl and her family as white, living in an ethnically diverse community. (Ages 5-9)

What does it look like to live on, even when Mom is gone? In this grounded, sensitive story, a young girl looks for ways of dealing with the anger, loneliness, and jealousy that death can create. Finding comfort in her mother's old sweater, she discovers that grief doesn't necessarily grow smaller over time--but little by little, day by day, we can grow into grief.

With striking, bold illustrations and evocative text, this story will be a gentle companion for young readers who are experiencing loss.