The Magic Home: A Displaced Boy Finds a Way to Feel Better

By Isabella Cassina

The Magic Home is a story for those who believe in magic, to turn fear into bravery and let fantasies run wild! This is a tale of a little boy that lives with his family, plays happily in the courtyard with his brother, sister, a brown dog and a fluffy white rabbit, and cannot wait to start school. Suddenly he has to leave for an unpredictable journey...

The Magic Home offers psycho-educational support for children, parents and childhood professionals who are assisting children through the difficult transition of displacement. The author presents a guide for caregivers grounded in the principles of Play Therapy that allows children to be engaged in a dynamic and engaging process based on their capacities and the objectives defined by a caring adult. The book is ideal for easy reading with individuals and groups, and the suggested activities can be used between parent and child, at school, in a healthcare agency or any other place where children spend time.

"The Magic Home is an endearing and enduring story of a child's journey to deal with unimaginable feelings of sadness, loss and displacement. This touching story teaches us how to tap into the child's resilience using the healing power of play and expressive arts. The Magic Home is a must-have book for child clinicians, caregivers and child professionals to use with children displaced from their homes, regardless of the situation."
-- Athena A. Drewes, PsyD, MA, RPT-S, founder and president emeritus of the New York Association for Play Therapy.

"The Magic Home is a comforting story about a little boy who loses all that is familiar and faces many uncertainties in his new life until he meets Ina, who helps him feel that he is not alone. This gently told story and sweet illustrations offer children who have faced disruptions in their families a sense of control over their circumstances and hope for a brighter future."
-- Sue Bratton, PhD, LPC-S, RPT-S, director emerita, Center for Play Therapy at University of North Texas

"The Magic Home takes us on a journey that is dealing with loss, adjustment and, most importantly, feelings. This book helps adults help children with big feelings that are hard to understand. The added suggestions on how to use the book and reusable figures are a valuable addition. A delightful and helpful book that helps us all know we have a magic home. "

• Language: English
• Publisher: Loving Healing Press
• Release date: May 1, 2020
• ISBN: 9781615995134

Book preview

The Magic Home: A Displaced Boy Finds a Way to Feel Better

Story and illustrations copyright (c) 2020 by Isabella Cassina

From the series The Adventures of Ina, Volume I

Translation from La Casa Magica in Italian by Gerardina Ricigliano

ISBN 978-1-61599-511-0 paperback

ISBN 978-1-61599-512-7 hardcover

ISBN 978-1-61599-513-4 eBook

Distributed by Ingram (USA/CAN/AU), Bertram’s Books (UK/EU)

This book is dedicated to

Claudio Mochi, my partner in all

adventures of Ina and beyond.

Isabella

This story begins like many others that you have heard, but it does not end as you might imagine. Join me on this journey, page by page. Sometimes, we will smile and take a deep sigh of relief; other times we may feel worried, but in the end, we will discover something magical and worthwhile.

Once upon a time, there was a little boy

Reviews for The Magic Home

[lilyroseshadowlyn · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The Magic Home is a good tool to help kids through tough changes. Suddenly moving to a new home can be hard, especially when you leave family and friends behind. It's easy to think of kids as resilient and that they'll just bounce back, but they can be affected just as much if not more than adults. An accessible introduction to play therapy with a great section at the end for adults about play therapy and exercises for using it.

[beckvalleybooks · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A very well written and illustrated book to show how children feel and how they all have their special place and special thoughts that they tend to go to when they need help to make them feel safe and secure.
The story starts with how much the routine and familiar sights and sounds means to a young person and then this routine is disrupted when his Mother takes him away from this safe environment.
They set up in a new home and the book expertly describes the young boys fears and emotions showing very strong research in this particular area. The easy writing and pictures make ideal discussion points to find out how a child would feel with such a big chance in their life.
With the change of home comes the biggest challenge of any youngsters life at the start of school and goes through all of the questions a child would have about starting school again making it an excellent tool to help your own child overcome their fears.
The authors research into the behaviour of a child comes to fruition when they actually explain how by having happy thoughts about where your child feels safe and secure can calm them down and help them cope with the major change which is happening in their lives.
Reading this book and looking at the pictures will be a very useful tool to have in your library to share with your child when they are feeling scared or vulnerable as it will encourage them to openly discuss their own fears without feeling pressured to do so.