Just a couple days ago, I brought out this book to read it to my boy. Most of what I remembered about the book is that it was touching and honest. I thought it would be a good stepping off point that I could use to have a discussion with my boy.

What it does purport to be, what it does do is tell a bit of Rosen's own story: the fact that his son Eddie died, how he feels sad and angry about it. Sometimes he wants to talk. Sometimes he doesn't: he just wants "to think about it on my own". Why? "Because it's mine. And no one else's." In Getting Better, Rosen describes the moment he discovered a photograph of a baby boy sitting on his mother’s knee. When he asked his father who the boy was, Rosen or his older brother, Brian, his father said neither – that it was a third son, Alan, who had died as an infant, before Rosen was born. Rosen was 10 at the time. Nobody in his family had spoken of Alan previously, there were no photographs of him in the house. And though Rosen’s father, Harold, mentioned Alan from time to time over the course of his life, Rosen never spoke about him with his mother, Connie.Sad means go somewhere, call your doctor, get a prescription or something, just go away with that nasty business.

The Sadness features cinematography by Jie-Li Bai, and was shot on Red Digital Cinema "Monstro" cameras with Arri "Signature Prime" lenses. Principal photography lasted 28 days. Some experience or understanding of a loss or sadness would be required, however the emotions are raw enough in the book for an unfamiliar audience to empathise. It could therefore be linked to more whole-class books like Goodnight Mr Tom. Mrs. McCullers with the fine hand of a craftsman and the insight of a poet explores the emotions of jealousy and loneliness in the troubled depths of abnormal personality. She leads us “down by the dim lake of Auber in the misty mid region of Weir.” I knew about this book. I had even heard Michael Rosen talking about it on the radio and liked the idea. But I hadn't read it.

An original 1951 review of Ballad of the Sad Café

a b c d Everington, Keoni (18 January 2021). "Taiwan-made zombie movie creeps into theaters Friday". Taiwan News . Retrieved 15 August 2021. The narrative provides just enough details about Kat and Jim to ensure we root for them to survive as unscathed as possible on their harrowing voyage through limb and corpse littered streets. But The Sadness doesn’t have much time for character depth or development as it barrels from set piece to set piece. The mild-mannered pair often gets lost and overshadowed against the bombastic, morally twisted infected they encounter. In our life, all of us have probably gone through some situations where we had to pretend that we are happy though life was beating us down. We had to put a smile on our faces so that no one could understand what was actually going on inside. Because “All the world’s a stage….” With unmitigated honesty, a touch of humor, and sensitive illustrations by Quentin Blake, Michael Rosen explores the experience of sadness in a way that resonates with us all. Kay, Jeremy (26 August 2021). "South Korea's 'Voice Of Silence' named best film at 2021 Fantasia Fest". Screen Daily . Retrieved 30 October 2021.