pfreeman Posted January 20, 2012 Share Posted January 20, 2012 Hello everyone, happy to have found this spot, hope someone can help me out. I am looking for some suggestions for light hearted/inspirational short stories or children's books. Emphasis on short, three hundred page novels won't work for my needs. They will end up as audiobooks so good art work is wasted on me. Its for my mom who has breast and bone cancer. She has had a lot of chemo and radiation to her head and now has a very hard time getting out of bed or concentrating for any period of time. Furthermore, English isn't her first or second language so heavy material is just going to confuse her. I don't think she will be interested in any like "chicken soup for the cancerous soul" or blatent self help books. She has enough of those. And they don't have to focus on overcoming cancer. I am hoping to find some titles that will comfort and make her smile. She is so bored being bed all day and I want her to have some small comforts to raise her spirits. Something akin to the short stories by Robert Munch or 'Alex and the Amazing Lemonade Stand' is what I hope to find more of. Though I am hoping to find some that aren't written specifically for children. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Star Posted January 20, 2012 Share Posted January 20, 2012 (edited) I'm sorry to hear about your mom. Hope she makes a speedy recovery and is back to her old self soon. What a wonderful idea you have thought of. I cannot think of any short stories though. Maybe any book by Roald Dahl although not sure they are inspirational but are very popular childrens books. All the best xx Edited January 20, 2012 by Star Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ruth Posted January 20, 2012 Share Posted January 20, 2012 Sorry to hear about your mom, it must be such a stressful time. Off the top of my head, I'd say perhaps the Alice In Wonderland stories, or L Frank Baum's Wizard of Oz series? Both light reading, and very enjoyable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hayley Posted January 20, 2012 Share Posted January 20, 2012 Roald Dahl came to my mind too. or maybe the Chronicles of Narnia series? Although written for children there's a lot more you can get out of it reading as an adult. There's always Harry Potter, which a lot of adults enjoy and the audio books are good Anne of Green Gables is a really nice book too Hope your Mom is feeling better soon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted January 20, 2012 Share Posted January 20, 2012 I'm sorry to hear about your Mum, I hope things will turn out the best for her. You said English isn't your Mum's first or even second language, so I got curious, what is her mother tongue, we have a lot of members on here from different countries and someone might come up with something on your Mum's own language? I haven't read many (if any?) short stories in English, so unfortunately I cannot come up with any great suggestions at the moment. Take care! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poppy Posted January 22, 2012 Share Posted January 22, 2012 I think several of PG Wodehouse's books are collections of short stories. One is Carry On Jeeves and another The Inimitable Jeeves. They are very funny and light-hearted. I hope your Mum will be OK. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrissy Posted January 22, 2012 Share Posted January 22, 2012 Pfreeman, I have been wracking my brain since I first read your post but came up with nothing, and then with each suggestion posted here I have thought "Yeah, that's a good one. Why didn't I think of that?" All I can offer is my best wishes to you Mum. I hope she is healthy and happy soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sadya Posted January 24, 2012 Share Posted January 24, 2012 I'd suggest short stories by Saki. There are several collected stories from his hand which are very funny, sometimes a commentary on society from his time. They often make me laugh out loud. I hope they will cheer up your mother, perhaps make her forget her troubles for a few minutes. May she beat cancer and may you all have many happy and healthy years together. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pfreeman Posted January 24, 2012 Author Share Posted January 24, 2012 Thank you all for your time, support and suggestions. Things have been improving since radiation ended. My mom's appetite has picked up slightly and we are all still very hopeful. I have considered Roald Dahl but thought him to be too dark and unsentimental. But I'll bet there are more than a few novels in his collection that would be appropriate. My mom has spent her life in the Philippines speaking Tagalog and Ilokano, and could be considered old fashioned from most perspectives. So 20th century folk tales might work despite the cultural differences. I was hoping to find some novels written in the native languages but I am struggling to find anything appropriate for the circumstances. I'll have to look into Wodehouse and Saki, they are not names I reconize. Thank you all again. Take care and God bless! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yannick Grant Posted February 14, 2012 Share Posted February 14, 2012 I'm sorry to hear about your mother, I think that she might like "6 to 8 black men" - by David Sedaris. "A heartwarming tale of Christmas in a foreign land where, if you've been naughty, Saint Nick and his friends give you an ass-whuppin" I've read it and I really liked it, since my parents are actually Dutch, I could relate pretty well to the story. I wish you and your mother all the best! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jennybaby Posted March 13, 2012 Share Posted March 13, 2012 My family and Other Animals by Gerald Durrell The Little Prince one of the short story collections by William Saroyan - a little old fashioned now but probably exactly the right thing Saki and Wodehouse are very English The Education of Kaplan Hyman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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