Books About Coping, Culture, and Comfort

This list was created by Lisa Von Drasek, Children's Librarian, with additional annotations from the Bank Street Bookstore newsletter. You may also want to visit our page on Web Resources for Coping with Fear, Terrorism, and War.

Books About September 11th

The annotations in this section are provided by the Bank Street Bookstore; you may buy these books at http://www.bankstreetbooks.com.

911: The Book of Help. Edited by Michael Cart with Marc Aronson and Marianne Carus. 10+
Wonderful children's authors including Katherine Paterson, Walter Dean Myers, Naomi Shihab Nye, and Sharon Creech reflect on September 11, in poems, stories, and essays that are excellent invitations to discussion. Sonya Sones contributes a particularly poignant and beautiful poem.

A Nation Challenged. Edited by The New York Times. 10+
Numerous photos, first-person accounts, and quotes from the pages of The New York Times as well as accessible explanations and diagrams combine in a comprehensive visual history book for children. The Pulitzer Prize winning photos are extremely affecting and appropriate only for older children or teens who will not be scared by the disturbing images.

Fireboat. By Maira Kalman. 4-8
With respectful but lively text and illustrations, Kalman adroitly comforts young children with the story of the John J. Harvey, a once decrepit, retired fireboat that was repaired and refurbished on a lark and then unexpectedly used to put out fires at Ground Zero. Reminiscent of The Little Red Lighthouse and the Great Gray Bridge, Fireboat helps children deal with confusing and sometimes overwhelming emotions. Ages 4-8.

With Their Eyes. Edited by Annie Thoms. 13+
Stuyvesant High School is just four blocks from Ground Zero. Hundreds of students witnessed the attack on the Twin Towers, and the entire school was affected. With the guidance of English teacher Annie Thoms, a group of students talked to members of their school community about their reactions and then wrote and staged this play based on the interviews. Ages 13 and up.

Coping

These titles describe and identify feelings, explain death and perhaps help cope with loss.

Aliki. Feelings. New York : Greenwillow Books, 1984. 4+
Happy, sad, mad, glad: they are explained in simple clear language.

Bang, Molly. When Sophie Gets Angry - Really, Really, Angry….New York : Scholastic, 1999. 4+
This Caldecott Honor book expresses out of control feelings with explosive reds, oranges and yellows.

Brown, Laurie Krasny, and Marc Brown. When Dinosaurs Die: A guide to understanding death. Boston: Little, Brown, 1996. 5+
Short simple answers to often asked questions accompanied by cartoonish illustrations.

Clifton, Lucille. Illustrated by Ann Grifalconi. Everett Anderson's Goodbye. New York: Holt, Rinehart, and Winston, 1983. 5+
A young African- American boy copes with his father's death.

Conrad, Pam. Illustrated by Richard Egielski. The Tub People. New York: Harper & Row, c1989. 4-8
The Tub Child, part of a family of toys who live on the edge of the bathtub, accidentally goes down the drain one day. The Tub Child is eventually rescued and reunited with his family, helping children understand that bad things sometimes happen, but their families (or a friendly Tub Policeman) will always be there to help them.

DePaola, Tomi. Nana Upstairs and Nana Downstairs. New York: Puffin 2000. 5+
This classic title for children coping with grief has been recently re-issued with color illustrations.

Doray, Malika. One More Wednesday. New York : Greenwillow Books, 2001. 4+
Simple line drawings and tender text describe a bunny's weekly visits with his granny and his questions now that she is gone.

Dower, Laura. I Will Remember You: What to Do When Someone You Love Dies. New York : Scholastic, 2001. 12+YA
An inspirational and accessible guide for teens who are coping with loss.

Gellman, Marc, and Thomas Hartman. Bad Stuff in the News New York : SeaStar Books, 2002. 9-13
Rabbi Gellman and Monsignor Hartman offer thoughtful and age-appropriate advice on dealing with the disturbing and sometimes terrifying things that appear in the news. They also explore reasons why these bad things happen and encourage kids to act compassionately and responsibly in their own lives.

-- Lost & Found: A Kid's Book for Living Through Loss. New York : Morrow Junior, 1999. 10+
These renowned clergymen tackle a tough subject ranging fro the loss of object to the loss of loved ones.

Harris, Robie. Illustrated by Jan Ormerod. Goodbye Mousie. New York : Margaret McElderry, 2001. 4+
The renowned author of It's So Amazing takes on the topic of the death of a pet for very young child.

Henkes, Kevin. Sun and Spoon. New York : Greenwillow Books, 1997. 10+
Ten-year-old Spoon worries that he will forget his grandmother who had recently died.

Holmes, Margaret M. A Terrible Thing Happened: A Story For Children Who Have Witnessed Violence or Trauma. American Psychological Association, 2000. 5+
From a mental heath expert, a picture book for helping children who have experienced trauma understand their feelings.

Howe, James, ed. The Color of Absence: 12 Tales About Loss and Hope. New York: Atheneum, 2001. YA 12+
Stories by authors such as Angela Johnson, Norma Fox Mazer, Michael J. Rosen, Virginia Euwer Wolff, Naomi Shihab Nye, Avi, Walter Dean Myers, Jacqueline Woodson, Chris Lynch, and James Howe.

Krementz, Jill. How It Feels When a Parent Dies. New York : Knopf, 1981. 8+
Eighteen children from ages seven to seventeen speak openly of their experiences and feelings accompanied photographs.

Lamb, Nancy. Illustrated by Floyd Cooper. One April Morning: Children Remember the Oklahoma City Bombing. New York : Lothrop, Lee & Shepard, 1996. 8+
Quotes from children are combined with descriptions of the events of the 1995 bombing.

Nye, Naomi Shihab, Editor. What Have You Lost?. New York: Greenwillow Books, 1999. 12+YA
One hundred and forty contemporary poets contribute to this collection of poems about a diversity of loss, from losing a glove to losing a loved one.

History and Culture

This is just a small selection of books that help us understand the diversity of cultures.

Ayoub, Abderrahman et al. Umm El Madayan: An Islamic City Through the Ages. Trans. Kathleen Leverich. Boston : Houghton Mifflin, 1994. 10+
The development of a fictional Islamic city over thousands of years obsessively illustrated with detailed drawings and double page spreads.

Carmi, Daniella. Samir and Yonatan. New York : Arthur A. Levine, 2000. 12+ YA

Heide, Florence Parry, and Judith Heide Gilliland. Illustrated by Ted Lewis. The Day of Ahmed's Secret. New York : Harper Collins, 1990. 6+
Set in modern day Egypt, a young boy who works delivering fuel oil goes about his daily tasks in Cairo anticipating the return to his family in the evening.

Heide, Florence Parry, and Judith Heide Gilliland. Illustrated by Mary Grandpre. House of Wisdom. New York : Dorling Kindersley Publishing, 1999. 6+
Ancient Baghdad is lovingly depicted in this luminous picture which tells the story of a library where scholars gathered to read, to exchange ideas, and collect the knowledge from all over the world.

Hoyt-Goldsmith Diane. Celebrating Ramadan. New York : Holiday House, 2001. 8+
A straight forward, if somewhat dry, explanation of this Muslim holiday.

London, Jonathan. Illustrated by Ted Lewin. Ali, Child of the Desert. New York : Lothrop, Lee & Shepard Books, 1997. 6+
Ali, a Moroccan child, is stranded with his family on the Great Sahara Desert.

Mathews, Mary. Illustrated by E.B. Lewis. Magid Fasts for Ramadan. New York : Clarion Books, 1996. 7+
In this early chapter book an eight-year-old boy wishes to follow the tenets of his faith. Illustrated with watercolors.

Mochuizuki, Ken. Baseball Saved Us. Illustrated by Dom Lee. New York : Lee & Low, 1993. 6+
A remarkable picture book portraying the internment of Japanese-Americans during WWII.

Morris, Ann. Loving. New York : Lothrop, Lee & Shepard, 1990. 3+
Exquisite photographs portraying families from around the world.

Nye, Naomi Shihab. Habibi. Illustrated by Raul Colon. New York : Simon and Schuster Books for Young Readers, 1997. YA
A fourteen-year-old Palestinian girl moves from the U.S. to her families home in Jerusalem.

Nye, Naomi Shihab, ed. The Space Between Our Footsteps: Poems and Paintings from the Middle East. New York : Simon & Schuster, 1998. YA
More than one hundred poets from nineteen different Middle Eastern countries share their innermost feelings about place, family, war, and peace.

Nye, Naomi Shihab, ed. This Same Sky: A Collection of Poems from Around the World. Selected by. New York : Four Winds Press, 1992. YA
One hundred twentyfive poems from sixty-eight countries around the world, many translated into English for the first time.

Comfort

The Children's Book Committee at Bank Street proposed a list of books that comfort us, which we turn to in times of stress. Here are a few of their favorites. When looking for comfort books, we defined them as great huddle together read-alouds. Cuddling in the blankets on a bed, snuggled in a big overstuffed chair, leaning together on the floor with a cat or dog across our feet.

Brown, Margaret Wise. Illustrated by Clement Hurd. Goodnight Moon. New York : Harper & Row, 1949. 3+
The classic bedtime tale.

Burnett, Frances Hodgson. The Secret Garden. New York : Harper & Row, 1962. 8+
Take a journey to a magic place where children can make friends despite their differences.

DiCamillo, Kate. Because of Winn Dixie. Cambridge, MA: Candlewick Press, 2000. 9+
Ten year old, India Opal Baloney is sad and lonely because she is missing her mother who she never really knew. Enter a big furry, smelly dog with a grin and talent for making friends.

Dunbar, Joyce. Illustrated by Debi Giori. Tell Me Something Happy Before I Go to Sleep. San Diego: Harcourt Brace, 1998. 3+
Sweet and gentle, a rhythmic story we want to hear over and over.

Eastman, P.D. Are You My Mother?. New York : Beginner Books, 1960. 3+

---Go Dog Go. New York : Beginner Books, 1961. 3+
Two short easy reads with wit and charm.

Fleischman, Paul. Seedfolks. New York : HarperCollins, 1997. 10+
If there was ever a way for a community to come together, it is to garden.

Fox, Mem. Illustrated by Jane Dyer. Time for Bed. San Diego : Harcourt, 1993. 2+
Rhymed couplets and oversized lovely watercolors portray a variety of animals tucking in for the night.

Henkes, Kevin. Owen. New York : Greenwillow Books, 1993. 3+
Owen finds comfort in his old blankie.

Hughes, Shirley. Dogger. New York : Lothrop, Lee & Shepard Books, 1988. 4+
A favorite stuffed animal is missing.

Joosse, Barbara M. Mama Do you Love Me?. San Francisco, CA : Chronicle Books, 1991. 3+
Set in Alaska, echoing The Runaway Bunny, a little girl asks her mother if she'll still be loved no matter what.

Montgomery, Lucy Maud. Anne of Green Gables. New York : Grosset & Dunlap, 1961. 10+
Spend sometime with a willful, talkative, red-headed, short-tempered orphan girl living on Prince Edward Island.

Peck, Richard. A Year Down Yonder. New York : Dial Books For Young Readers, 2000. 12+

Sendak, Maurice. Where the Wild Things Are. New York : Harper & Row, 1963. 4+
A classic worth retelling of young Max who misbehaves, sails away only find when he returns that supper is still warm.

Steig, William. Pete's a Pizza. New York : Harper Collins, 1998. 3+
A family that plays together...

White, E.B. Charlotte's Web. New York : Harper, 1952. 8+
A pig, a spider and a rat aren't the usual friends but then again Charlotte is no ordinary spider.

Williams, Vera. A Chair for My Mother. New York : Greenwillow Books, 1982. 5+
A family deals with the loss of their belongings and works together to make a new home.

Help for Parents (and Teachers) When Children are Scared

The annotations in this section are provided by the Bank Street Bookstore; you may buy these books at http://www.bankstreetbooks.com.

Mommy, I'm Scared. By Joanne Cantor, Ph.D.
An expert on children and the media helps parents intelligently limit their children's exposure to scary movies and television shows, including the news. She explores what content is most disturbing to which ages, and suggests age-appropriate ways in which parents can respond when a child has been scared by an image they've seen.

Terrorism and Kids By Fern Reiss.
Brief but informative text outlines strategies for helping children understand the violence they see in the news and cope with any new fears they may have as a result of September 11 or any violent event. Reiss also includes common questions children ask with truthful but reassuring responses.

What Should I Tell the Kids? By Ava L. Siegler, Ph.D.
From divorce, alcohol, and homosexuality to violent crimes and natural disasters, a noted child psychologist explores the ways in which children process and react to information about tough topics. Numerous sample dialogues explore ways in which parents can explain confusing issues in clear and comforting ways based on their child's age.