We’ve gathered a selection of titles for young readers to enjoy with their loved ones this coming Mother’s Day and Father’s Day, ranging from sweet and silly animal tales and moving odes to intergenerational bonds, to stories celebrating quiet moments between parent and child.
Peter Horn, trans. from the German by Johanna McCalmont, illus. by Jessica Meserve. NorthSouth, $19.95 (40p) ISBN 978-0-7358-4567-1. Ages 4–8. Daddy Tortoise and son Sebastian play an extended guessing game that doubles as a celebration of how animal dads care for their young in this picture book. Meserve’s whimsical nature illustrations add charm to the exchanges.
K.L. Going, illus. by Fiona Lee. Beach Lane, $19.99 (32p) ISBN 978-1-4424-3416-5. Ages 4–8. Going and Lee spotlight mother-child bonds in this glowing portrait of doting caregivers. Rhythmic second-person lines articulate variations on, “Silly momma!/ She so loves kissing the baby./ So loves,/ yes, she just so loves.” Accompanying scenes support with naturalistic depictions of parents of varying skin tones luxuriating in baby hugs throughout the day as their cherubic charges laugh and smile.
Bashabi Fraser, illus. by Maanvi Kapur. Lantana, $18.99 (32p) ISBN 978-1-83629-005-6. Ages 4–9. A child struggles to find a fitting Mother’s Day card as Fraser’s lines rhythmically describe the way none of the cards resemble the child protagonist’s parent. As the narrator expresses a bespoke vision for an ideal card, Mom comes further into focus via energetic scenes of her selling pakoras at the mela, dancing the bhangra, and more. Though a store-bought card with Mom’s “happy brown face smiling sweetly at me” never materializes, a DIY alternative results in an affirming ending.
Tika Sumpter, illus. by April Apodaca. Genius Cat, $18.99 (40p) ISBN 978-1-962447-23-2. Ages 4–8. Sumpter and Apodaca highlight mothers as role models in this lesson-oriented work. First-person narration by a bespectacled child gushes about Mama: “I want to be just like her one day, so I always practice.” Following an incident and an apology from her mother, the child’s concluding observation will resonate beyond the page: “She’s not perfect, but she’s perfect for me!”
Hà Dinh, illus. by Yong Ling Kang. Random House Studio, $18.99 (40p) ISBN 978-0-5937-1178-1. Ages 4–8. A girl internalizes the meaning behind a special gift in this quietly moving picture book that’s inspired, per an endnote, by a bracelet the author was given as a child. On her birthday, young Tiên receives a jade bracelet from Má, who explains that when she herself was little, she obtained one from Tiên’s late grandmother. Kang neatly depicts the bracelet’s beauty amid the family’s lived-in home and recollected history.
Love, Dad: Inspiring Notes from Fathers to Kids
Joel Warsh and Andrew Gardner, illus. by David Elmo Cooper. Random House, $14.99 (40p) ISBN 978-0-593-57216-0. Ages 3–7. Messages of hope and care ground an epistolary picture book that remixes 18 fathers’ wishes for their children. “Dear Kiddo,” the volume opens, “When you grow up, I hope you....” Filling in the blank, text on each spread conveys the importance of self-love, gratitude, kindness, and leadership: “I hope the biggest love you have is for yourself.”
Laura Numeroff, illus. by Masha Sudovykh. Brown/Sampson, $18.99 (32p) ISBN 978-1-61254-689-6. Ages 4–8. From waking until bedtime one Sunday, corgis Mama and Max remain at each other’s side in this agreeable portrait of intergenerational attachment; the book’s plotting centers simple childhood delights.
Mommy Love: A Mindfulness Exercise for Mothers and Babies
Susan Verde, illus. by Naoko Stoop. Viking, $18.99 (32p) ISBN 978-0-593-46497-7. Ages 4–8. Amid “tired and tears,” a new mother sits next to a sleeping newborn, a cup of tea in her hands: “I am discovering how to pause/ and sit with what is.” Across this serene meditation on caretaking, Verde sets the stage for actions that nurture parent as well as child, modeling self-talk and other practices that might help smooth first weeks and months.
Fran Pintadera, trans. from the Spanish by Charlesbridge, illus. by Joan Turu. Charlesbridge, $17.99 (40p) ISBN 978-1-62354-491-1. Ages 4–8. Two children compete to prove that “my dad is the best,” in this goofy tale of one-upmanship. Things quickly escalate as the kids continue to up the ante until cumulative lines achieve a pinnacle of absurdity. The mood softens after disastrous results predictably ensue, with the dads modeling a camaraderie that leaves everyone blushing with happiness.
Our Mothers’ Names: Love in Many Languages
Uma Menon, illus. by Rahele Jomepour Bell. Candlewick, $18.99 (32p) ISBN 978-1-5362-2250-0. Ages 4–8. A child’s investigation into the many different words for mother opens up the world of languages in this cross-cultural reflection. Jomepour Bell’s mixed-media illustrations show mothers and children dancing, crafting, baking, and celebrating throughout this fond accounting of maternal monikers.
Chasten Buttigieg, illus. by Dan Taylor. Philomel, $19.99 (40p) ISBN 978-0-593-69398-8. Ages 3–7. Twins Rosie and Jojo and their daddy eagerly await Papa’s return home in Buttigieg and Taylor’s amiable picture book. As the children, portrayed with brown skin, anticipate leaving for the airport to pick up Papa, they overzealously prepare, feeling that “I think we might be missing something.” Taylor’s slick digital artwork captures the happy chaos of family life in this satisfying work that ends with a joyful reunion.
Christina Perri, illus. by Joy Hwang Ruiz. Viking, $18.99 (32p) ISBN 978-0-593-62259-9. Ages 3–7. In this portrait of parental doting, singer-songwriter Perri recasts her titular ballad to describe the enduring connection between an adult and growing child. Verses take the perspective of an adult speaker, centering on the sustaining sentiments expressed in the refrain “I have loved you for a thousand years./ I’ll love you for a thousand more.”
