child refugee awareness and a favourite book

Have you seen this remarkable—though gruelling—webpage?  It’s called Where the children sleep and it shows a series of images of sleeping children who have been displaced by the war in Syria. There are 22 images, each with a few words about the child's circumstances.

It’s hard to look at, the stories are upsetting, the distress of their parents is impossible to imagine. Yet, the experiences are real and the needs are pressing. Who knows if money is the complete answer—but it certainly has the potential to help a child, and so we donated here.

Compassion grows best in empathy, and empathy grows best in shared experiences. That’s why Where the children sleep evokes a physical as well as an emotional response—a sleeping, cherubic child is so close to our home and hearts.

Depending on your child’s age and exposure to world conditions, this site may be a bit too raw. So, for a less gruelling but still thought-provoking look at the wildly disparate sleeping places of children around the world we’d recommend Where Children Sleep. (The book and the web page are unrelated even though they have similar names.) 

I’ve seen many a child and adult sit and pore over the pages of this breathtaking book. And, many times, I’ve planned to read just a few pages to a group of children but instead spent over an hour reading and talking about the children, their lives and their homes. Since each child has a sleeping place there is an instant connection and an instant understanding. 

A truly wonderful book. (You can have a look at some of the images here.) Where Children Sleep is by James Mollison, published by Chris Boot, 2010
ages 4 years to grown-up

Amazon - Book Depository - Booktopia

Book Depository has free postage anywhere in the world and great pricing, but Amazon might be cheaper for North American readers. 

P.S. If you're looking for other books to help connect your child in gentle ways to the more heartbreaking situations around the world, you might like to try our refugee or homelessness categories.