Telling children about death

How do you tell a little girl that her grandfather, her mother, her friend… has died, and that he or she has gone for ever? Txabi Arnal, a lecturer at the University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), has analysed literary picture books that deal with death to see how they address this question. Taking this piece of research as the basis, he has defended his thesis entitled El tratamiento de la muerte en el álbum ilustrado infantil. Obras publicadas en castellano (How death is handled in illustrated children’s picture books. Works published in Spanish). As the author himself points out: “I have studied a subject matter that has barely been dealt with until now. My main aim has been to take away the fear, to tackle the taboo.”