Books about friendship

Books about friendship have always had a special place in the world of children’s literature. Who out there cannot relate to the friendship between Wilbur and Charlotte or the unusual friendship between George and Martha or the more recent Herman and Rosie (Gordan). We all need our friends and the special friendships we form in childhood often stay with us, giving us old and new memories to share as we age. Here are a few new books about friendship both within and outside of the family. My only concern is that all of these books focus on the friendships of boys. Only Lenny and Lucy includes a female within the friend mix, but that character does not enter until the last few pages of the book. Come on, authors, let’s support girl friendships as well!

Big Friends by Linda Sarah and Benji Davies

If you have ever experienced a great friendship that is disrupted when a third person joins in, this book is for you. Birt and Echo are “Big Friends” spending every minute together having adventures on Sudden Hill with their cardboard boxes. When Shu joins them, the rhythm changes and Birt feels left out. Luckily for Birt, both Shu and Echo joyfully encourage Birt to rejoin the group and now the adventures have three. A happy story of friendship gone right. A great classroom read when children seem to be forming alliances for and against one another. Big Friends shows how friendship can expand to reach more than two.

Lenny & Lucy by Philip C. Stead, Illustrated by Erin E. Stead

When Peter and his family move to a new house, he is not happy and the dark woods on the other side of the bridge outside his window keep him awake at night. Peter and his dog Harold build Lenny first as a guardian of the night, but when that does not seem enough, they build Lucy as well. Finally, Millie, the girl next door comes over offering her binoculars “and a bag of marshmallows, too.” This nascent friendship is barely described and occurs on the last few pages of the book. But, it is compelling and begs to be continued. This award winning husband and wife team have once again connected with both children and adults in a story about moving, loneliness, fear and ultimately friendship.

How to Share with a Bear by Eric Pinder, Pictures by Stephanie Graegin

Thomas builds a cave of blankets and pillows in his living room, but finds that a little bear has invaded his space. What follows is a bunch of tricks on Thomas’ part to get the bear out of the cave. While Thomas devises clever ploys, the bear always seems to be one step ahead of him and his time alone in the cave is short. Toward the end of the book, the reader realizes that the bear is a younger sibling making the book so much more meaningful and poignant. A sweet way to introduce sharing space and objects with younger siblings as well as the idea that a brother or sister could be a good friend.

Love Monster and the Last Chocolate by Rachel Bright

Love Monster is returning home after a long trip, only to find a box of chocolates on his doorstep. Imagining sharing this box of chocolates with his friends, Love Monster quickly realizes that if he shares, he might not get the chocolate that he wants. When his queasy stomach will not allow him to keep the chocoaltes to himself,  Love Monster runs to his friends eager to share his gift with them. When he finds his friends, they are busy getting ready for a party to welcome him home. Opening the box of chocolates, he discovers that his friends have saved one last chocolate for him and it is his favorite: Double Chocolate Strawberry Swirl! Oh, to have friends who know what our favorites are and who save our favorites just for us!

Dear Yeti by James Kwan

Two young hikers are on an adventure and looking for Yeti, a beat of the mountains. Yeti proves to be elusive until the hikers are in danger of being eaten by a bear. Then he appears and politely asks the bear not to eat his friends. Sweet drawings and simple language told largely through notes the hikers write to Yeti.

.Kwan’s first picture book sets him up for a long career writing and illustrating for children.

Time for  Cranberries by Lisl H. Detlefsen, Illustrated by Jed Henry

When I first glanced at the picture of the front of this book, it made me think of the commercials for Ocean Spray Cranberry Juice. The author who lives on a cranberry farm with her husband and two sons describes the process of harvesting cranberries through words, pictures and interactions between three family members: father, mother and school-aged son. For those who live on farms, the hard work and use of large machinery will be recognized. For those who do not, the depictions of harvesting just one of our many food crops will open their eyes to the hard work and sheer joy involved. While no child friends are shown in this book, the young boy has a great friendship with his parents as they obviously love doing what they are doing.