John C. Blackford – illustratör

Fills a vital need—that of the child whose parent is undergoing treatment for addiction and who is overwhelmed with the mixed emotions and uncertainties of a problem that affects millions of American families, but which no one wants to talk about. This book offers encouragement to children of a father (or mother) in recovery that there IS hope, that their family is NOT strange or bad, that they are NOT ALONE, and that a happy life in recovery is possible for their family, too Likeable Gabe makes the journey from being an almost-friendless, unhappy, and skeptical young boy reeling from mistreatment at the hands of his addicted father and the effects the disease of addiction has had on his family, to a hopeful, happy youngster who takes pride in his dad's greatest accomplishment: recovery. The shame and isolation felt by the family members of addicts are explored as Gabe learns important lessons about the disease of addiction, its widespread nature, and its solution. Peppered with Gabe's insights and enhanced with charming and evocative illustrations, The Secret of Willow Ridge: Gabe's Dad Finds Recovery addresses the emotional and social issues children of addicts face through an engaging and contemporary story. With a foreword by Claudia Black, Ph.D. written specifically for the target reader.