Official Review: Flutterfly by Carolyn Cutler Hughes

ciecheesemeister · Post by **ciecheesemeister** » 20 Aug 2020, 10:45

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Flutterfly" by Carolyn Cutler Hughes.]

4 out of 4 stars

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Flutterfly is a beautifully illustrated children’s book by Carolyn Cutler Hughes. The book uses the life cycle of a butterfly as an allegory for death. The butterfly begins life as an egg and during its time as a caterpillar, it meets and interacts with many other caterpillars. When this stage comes to an end, the caterpillar wraps itself in a cocoon and develops into a butterfly. As a butterfly, it flies free with other butterflies and sometimes watches the caterpillars going about their lives on the ground.

I give Flutterfly an enthusiastic four out of four stars. There was nothing that I disliked about the story or its presentation. My favorite thing about the book was the gorgeous illustrations. The colors in the illustrations are vibrant and the text is clear and easy to read against the background. I wish that there had been a book like this when I was a child. Death was a taboo subject for children when I was growing up, so when confronted with it, I wasn’t prepared for it.

Butterflies have long been used as an allegory for the spirit departing the confines of the body after death. The year after my father passed away after a long period of illness and decline, my son and I attended a butterfly releasing ceremony at a local hospice. As each of the names were read, the families released the butterfly that had been given to them.

My father’s memorial service was not held until several years after his passing so that as many of his close friends and family as possible could plan to be there. A bagpiper played Amazing Grace following the sharing of memories and as the song ended, he walked away from the gravesite. As he was doing so, a butterfly landed on the gravestone momentarily, then took off in the same direction as a piper. Some may scoff at the thought that this was anything but mere coincidence. I prefer to keep an open mind.

I think that this book could be very comforting for young children experiencing a death in the family or the death of a pet. Death is a difficult concept even for adults to understand. Personally, I like the idea of the spirit flying free like a butterfly. Thinking about it this way doesn’t necessarily remove the pain of the loss, but I find that it makes it somewhat easier to bear.

I recommend this book not only as a means for parents to have a helpful and comforting way to explain death to young children, but as a healing tool for adults who are struggling as well. I have experienced several losses in the past ten years and reading this little book brought me a sense of peace. The only people I would not recommend this book for are those who really dislike children’s books or those who have disdain for the idea that death is anything but the cessation of vital functions.

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Flutterfly
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Ada Ling · Post by **Ada Ling** » 27 Aug 2020, 11:14

"I think that this book could be very comforting for young children experiencing a death in the family or the death of a pet." - Death is hard to adults. No talking about this to children. Thank you for the great review!

TCG · Post by **TCG** » 27 Aug 2020, 15:57

A beautiful illustration using a butterfly sounds interesting to me. Good review.

male_azarke · Post by **male_azarke** » 27 Aug 2020, 19:55

Death can be a concept quite difficult to grasp for children and adults. As a topic that has been avoided (and still is), I'm glad that it is being addressed so didactically at a young age.

Ify_Reviewer · Post by **Ify_Reviewer** » 29 Aug 2020, 04:06

Seems the book has a beautiful way of explaining the concept of death to little minds. Thanks for the review

Hazel Arnaiz · Post by **Hazel Arnaiz** » 31 Aug 2020, 04:12

I liked how you also recommend this book to adults needing comfort and healing. The simplicity of the child within us helps in keeping up with the complexity of our adult life. Thank you for your insightful review.