Title: Daddy is Cool Like That
Authors: Mary Anne McMahon and Jennifer Bucciero Boyles
Illustrator: Ros Webb
Publisher: Independently Published
ISBN: 979-8800759464
Pages: 32
Genre: Illustrated Children’s Book / Educational
Reviewed by: Beth Adams
Pacific Book Review
Daddy is Cool Like That is the great title for a book dedicated to Michael George Bucciero, written by his daughter Jennifer Bucciero Boyles, and an accomplished storyteller author Mary Anne McMahon.
The story follows Rachael’s memories of when her dad came down with Multiple Sclerosis (MS) which, over time, grew with his disabilities becoming ever more extreme, however throughout the journey dealing with the muscular degeneration, Rachael’s dad kept his cool. Yes, daddy is cool like that.
Rachael used to watch and wait for her dad to come home, driving up in his flashy convertible, and they would go out to do fun things; such as eating ice cream sundaes; going to Saturday afternoon movies; playing in the park; and many other fun things. Yet although her dad became weaker, he still tried to keep up his love for having fun activities. He progressed from having to use walking canes to a wheelchair, which meant he needed to get rid of his spiffy sports car and buy a van equipped with disability controls and a ramp for his wheelchair or scooter. But even dealing with these changes, “Daddy” would take his girls out for grocery shopping and have fun by buying all the junk food they wanted. They went to an amusement park where, because of his handicap, they were moved to the front of each of the lines for the rides, which made the day more enjoyable not having to spent much time in lines, and more time on the rides. They adopted a service dog, a beautiful Golden Retriever, which may never have happened if is wasn’t for “Daddy’s” disability.
Daddy is Cool Like That is much deeper in its messaging than the superficial aspects of the story. It deals with Rachael’s deep sorrow and feelings of sadness having to cope with her dad’s medical situation. Personal therapy to help her deal with the emotional stress worked well, in her case, and she managed to overcome the sadness – which put the rest of the story into a new light of dealing with what life dishes out to everyone with a positive attitude. Yes, this book has an important moral for all those dealing with the physical demise of a family member’s health, and is a must-read to youngsters having any family member, especially an aging parent or grandparent, going down the wrung of the ladder of good health into ever increasing disability.
The illustrations are wonderfully synchronized with the storyline, offering readers an immersible experience paging through this book. The skills learned by the authors’ many years of education seamlessly brings this story into an educational and therapeutic moral without the readers ever knowing really how they are becoming groomed with the positive message inherent in this book. Yes, this is a cool book, and yes, daddy is cool like that, too.
