Welcome to the Children’s Book Review Series by Multiple Allergy Family!
We are looking at several books that are relevant to children with food allergies or sensitivities. This way you don’t have to drop a ton of money or order every single book in your public library’s system in order to find the one, two, or even several, that are perfect for your kids. Whether you’re a parent, guardian, relative, teacher, nurse, or you have food allergies, yourself, you can use our guides to find the book that’s right for the job.
Why would I want to use one of these books? Even if allergies do not affect you, 1 in 13 children have a food allergy. This means almost everyone knows a child or adult with food allergies. Moreover, and just as important, these books are another way to help us increase our understanding of others and learn how we can help our friends.
Children are especially vulnerable to allergic reactions for many reasons. These include a lack of knowledge, a lack of vigilance, an over-trust of well-intentioned others that may unknowingly offer unsafe foods, and an inability to recognize and notify loved ones of allergy symptoms. All of these keep us allergy families up at night (and so vigilant while outside the home).
I started reading these books to my children as another way I can help them learn to keep themselves and their friends safe. And it has helped. Our oldest has become so much more aware and has picked up skills that may save (or have saved) his life. That’s when we decided to share the books we found through our Children’s Book Review Series.
If you know of any books we should cover please let us know! We want to support our allergy families and the books that help all kids grow their knowledge, awareness, and empathy.
Our Book Review Criteria
We decided to judge all our books on a few categories: the targeted age group and how informative the book was. We also judged the books on entertainment factors because, let’s face it, that’s also important.
So let’s get going with the reviews!
Bentley Goes to School: A simple story about staying safe with food allergies by Emily Sorenson, Illustrated by Yuribelle
Targeted age group: Preschool/Elementary schoolers
Summary
Bentley goes to school for the first time. He meets his teacher. She tells him to talk to her if he is ever upset. She also knows about his allergies and will help keep him safe. They learn numbers, play, and make art. Bentley asks his teacher if the art supplies are safe for him, which they are. While playing he knows not to put any toys in his mouth. When it’s snack time, he says, “Let’s wash hands.” He knows the food in his lunchbox is safe because his parents packed it. He eats on a placemat and knows not to share food. Bentley says, “no, thank you,” to offers of sharing food, cups, or utensils. He doesn’t eat food off the floor or let his silverware touch the table. Bentley is an apparently bright child!
The last page provides guidelines for reading the book to your child, such as explaining which art supplies might be unsafe. It encourages readers to role-play and look into obtaining a 504 educational plan from your child’s school, especially relating to food policies and craft supplies.
Reactions
I love watching my child connect with the character as we read about Bentley’s day at school. He soaks in every detail whenever we read it. He relates to getting ready, school drop-off, lessons, lunchtime, and recess, as well as the extra precautionary measures that allow him to participate in all those activities safely. I liked that this book seemed to provide my child with an example for him to follow while he’s at school. We usually end up having some great talks after reading the book.
Overall
Bentley Goes to School is a great little book for children starting school or in the younger grades. It is fairly thorough in explaining how young children can keep themselves safe at school. I like how Bentley advocated for himself and had fun at school.
I appreciated how Bentley’s allergies were not the entire focus of the book, it’s only a part of what he does. It also addresses starting school for the first time and how they may feel. FYI, this book would not be good for someone looking for an explanation on allergic reactions and treating them. It mostly helps them learn how to keep themselves safe without touching upon medical emergencies. As appropriate, help them learn how to recognize reactions, since these are not covered in the book.
Most importantly, our family loved this book! And I believe this one really helps teach our kids how to live well while keeping themselves safe.
Affiliate discloser: MultipleAllergyFamily is reader-supported. As an Amazon associate, we may earn commissions from qualifying purchases on Amazon