“Here I lie, I have a tumor… And you ask me where’s my sense of humor?” 

The Jester Has Lost His Jingle bilingual edition (The Jester.org)

This line, from David Saltzman’s children’s book “The Jester Has Lost His Jingle,” might seem too intense for youngsters, but for those 12,000 children who will be diagnosed with cancer this year, it’s just what the doctor ordered.

Written and illustrated by Saltzman, “The Jester Has Lost His Jingle” is about a Jester who goes on a quest with his friend Pharley, a piece of talking wood, to find laughter in a world where it has mysteriously gone missing.

Saltzman wrote “The Jester” for his senior thesis at Yale. At 22, Saltzman died from Hodgkin’s disease. His last wish was for his family to publish his book, and they kept their promise hundreds of thousands of times over. Thanks to appearances on national television and publications, “The Jester” has sold more than 325,000 copies. 

Almost 15 years after the first publication of “The Jester,” it was republished in September to include a Spanish translation underneath the vibrant, colorful illustrations. 

On Sunday, October 21 from 2 to 4 p.m., the Barnes & Noble at The Grove will host “the Jester’s mom,” Barbara Saltzman (a USC Annenberg alum), as she reads and signs the new bilingual release “The Jester Has Lost His Jingle/El Bufón ha perdido su gracia.” 

Barnes & Noble will donate a percentage of any purchase made during that time to The Jester & Pharley Phund, a nonprofit started by Barbara Saltzman to benefit literacy and ill children.

Reach Staff Reporter Laura Santana here. Follow Staff Reporter Laura Santana on Twitter.