Welcome to my obsession with children’s books–especially the ones that deal with everyday challenges in a fun and compelling way. I’ll share old classics, new gems, and everything in between to help support you and your kids (or just your kids if they like to read solo). Sign up and you’ll get my top-pick resources, delivered to your inbox each month on the full and new moon.
Here We Are: Notes for Living on Planet Earth by Oliver Jeffers (Harper Collins Children’s Books, 2017)
Do you ever feel like you’re all alone on this big planet? While Earth is vast, there are a lot of people here—and this book reminds you you’re never alone. Oliver Jeffers wrote this book for his newborn son to explain what he needed to know about Planet Earth. Like,… Read More
The Little Soul and the Sun: A Children’s Parable adapted from Conversations with God by Neal Donald Walsch (Young Spirits Books, 1998)
Do you want to go deep with your kids and help them understand spiritual ideas? This parable shares a conversation that the Little Soul has with Spirit—and God is not depicted as an old man in the sky with a grey beard. God is symbolized as the Sun. Little Soul… Read More
I am Peace: A Book of Mindfulness by Susan Verde (Abrams Books for Young Readers, 2017)
There’s a lot of chaos in the world right now and many of us are feeling it. How do we find peace inside of us and help our children to do the same? Mindfulness is a powerful and effective tool available to all of us. A lot of people are… Read More
Lilly’s Big Day by Kevin Henkes (Greenwillow Books, 2006)
Still feeling wedding fever from the Royal wedding this month? Wedding season is here and whether or not your child has any interest in weddings (or being a flower girl), this book will help you deal with a child who won’t let things go. Lilly is bent on being the… Read More
Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis (Delacorte Press, 1999)
Set during one of the bleakest times in history, Bud, not Buddy, is about a 10-year-old African American boy living in Flint, Michigan. It’s the middle of the Great Depression, a time that was especially hard on African Americans. Bud’s all alone, searching for a father he’s never known or… Read More
A Baby Sister for Frances by Russell Hoban (HarperCollins, 1993)
Is your child about to become a big sister or brother? Being displaced by a new-born baby in the family can be heartbreaking for the first-born child. Read More
Freak the Mighty by Rodman Philbrick (Scholastic Paperbacks, 2001)
Kevin is a brainy boy who gets teased for being small and sickly. To become Freak the Mighty, he joins forces with Max, a giant boy everyone calls stupid. They combine their strengths in an unlikely friendship and take on the bullies in their lives—together. Read More
Franklin in the Dark by Paulette Bourgeois (Scholastic Paperbacks, 1987)
Is your child afraid of the dark? Are they afraid of being alone? There’s a Franklin the Turtle book for every possible problem and stage, and my kids and I love every single one. Read More
See You in the Cosmos by Jack Cheng (Dial Books, 2017)
Families are complicated and so is love and friendship. You’ll fall in love with Alex, the 11-year old main character, because of his quirky way of seeing the world. Read More
Feelings by Aliki (Greenwillow Books, 1986)
This book validates the ways a child can experience many different feelings in a day (oh boy, can’t we all!). Read More