Mom Goes to War

A queen who begins a lengthy war with an army of allies by her side is also a mother who wants to explain her upcoming battle with cancer to her young children in this heartening and hopeful book. James and Simon are two young princes whose mother, the Queen, calls them into her throne room one day to explain that she is about to enter a war against a rebel force called breast cancer. She describes the changes that will be coming to the kingdom in the form of a very specialized general who will lead the war effort, highly advanced weapons that target rebel forces, and allies called red and white blood cells who will police the kingdom and fight the numerous battles in her name. The Queen also explains how innocent lives might be lost, such as the cells that make her hair grow, but that the war is one that can be won. And although she might grow very tired from all the fighting, once the war is over her kingdom will be able to rebuild and move forward into a bright future with the princes by her side.

Irene Aparici Martín is a breast cancer survivor and this is her first book. Mónica Carretero is an author and an award-winning illustrator. Her books include Little Cloud Lamb, the Handbooks series, the Mini-animalist series, and Yago's Heartbeat. The Pirates Handbook won Best Children's Picture Book–Spanish at the 2011 Latino Book Awards, and her watercolor Lady Pirate from the same book received a prize at the 2010 London Book Fair.