Everyone knows the beloved children’s tales: The Cat and the Hat, Goodnight Moon, I Love You Forever, etc. But what about kids’ books that take on those really tough or unique situations that can sometimes be difficult to explain? Here are 10 books to help you begin the conversation with kids about grief, adoption, blended families, autism, diversity, and more.
- Where Are You? A Child’s Book About Loss – Have you recently experienced some form of loss? This book helps your 4- to 8-year-old understand and cope with a loss.
- The Invisible String – Another book about death, this book tells the story of the invisible string and how children are always connected to the ones they love even after death.
- The Family Book – This is a wonderful little book meant for 5- to 6-year-olds that describes all the possible different kinds of family there are, whether it’s one mom and dad or two moms or two dads.
- We’re Different, We’re the Same – This is a great book created with Sesame Street characters that explores diversity and explains that no matter how different we are, we are similar as well. Great book for teaching your children (3- to 7-year-olds) to understand diversity.
- God Found Us You – This is a sweet book that explores God and the process of adoption. A really heartfelt description of the love that comes with waiting and wishing for a child from the perspective of an adoptive mom.
- My Blended Family – Follow Lenny as he discovers that Olivia has another family which includes a stepmom and many step-siblings. Another good book to help teach your 6- to 7-year-old that there are many different but wonderful families out there.
- I Love You All the Same – This is a sweet book about a mama bear who explains to her three very different baby bears that she loves them all the same. This is a good one to help explain to children who are adopted or are stepchildren that you love them all the same.
- Two Homes – This is a great book for children who are going through or have experienced parents who are divorced. It has a positive look into Alex’s two different homes.
- Step One, Step Two, Step Three and Four – This book is wonderful for children dealing with the changes that come from their parents’ divorcing and remarrying. It talks about a little girl who is learning to deal with her four new stepbrothers. It’s a good read to open up the discussion about the changes happening for kids with new blended families, and how to help them adjust and cope.
- What About Me? A Book For and By an Autism Sibling – This is an eye-opening read for families who have kids with autism. It’s a good and positive look at what it’s like for children who have siblings with autism and how to cope with it.
