13-year-old publishes book to cope with mom's cancer

At 10 years old, DaeQuan Morrison was dealing with one of the most frightening situations of his life...

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At 10 years old, DaeQuan Morrison was dealing with one of the most frightening situations of his life. He learned his mother Patricia, had been diagnosed with breast cancer. Morrison is not alone when dealing with this fear, doctors note that children often experience fear of a parent’s illness in a series of chronic nightmares and forms of insomnia.

Morrison, however, found a positive way to channel the fear that appeared in his chronic nightmares by creating a storybook. The children’s book, entitled What’s the Spook?, is DaeQuan’s experience in 28 pages. The Huffington Post reports:

When DaeQuan Morrison’s mom, Patricia, was diagnosed with breast cancer three years ago, he dealt with it the best way he knew how: He published a book.

At age 10, DaeQuan penned “What’s the Spook?,” a 28-page storybook following a boy whose series of escalating nightmares lead him into the underworld. The book, which is based on DaeQuan’s experience with chronic nightmares following his mother’s cancer diagnosis and chemotherapy treatment, culminates with his realization that closeness to God is the only way to overcome his fears, he told the New York Daily News.

Patricia is now three years into her battle with breast cancer, and DaeQuan, now 13, has offered to donate the proceeds from his book — currently selling for $18 at Amazon and Barnes & Noble — to the Feinstein Institute for Medical Research in Manhasset, N.Y.

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