A Terrible Thing Happened by Margaret Holmes

This story was written for children who have witnessed violence or trauma. It’s a great addition to a teacher’s library under “Bibliotherapy.

It tells of a little raccoon, Sherman Smith, who sees a "terrible thing" and how he represses his feelings about it. He starts feeling sick, he acts out at school and gets into trouble. So, he goes for child therapy, and over time works out his feelings about seeing the "terrible thing" with the aid of a kind and understanding therapist.

The story uses this fun character to show different emotions that children have after witnessing or being a part of something that is traumatic to them. It could be their parents fighting, divorce, abuse, etc. The special beauty about this book is that it doesn’t tell what the character witnessed. Thus, the book is incredibly flexible in that it can apply to a number of situations and to a number of readers. The story speaks of how sometimes we try to hide from the scary feelings created by trauma and how we may act out because of our trying to suppress those feelings. It demonstrates to the reader/child that it helps to talk about what is bothering them. It also provides an entre' into therapy experiences. Great story, great resource. Beverly - teacher