Best friends are the people you can do anything and nothing with and still have the best time. Friends come in all shapes and sizes. Sometimes a friendship seem unlikely―because of different cultures or even species, but despite differences, a bond forms. Here are books about friendship that you’ll love using in your storytimes. If you need ideas for rhymes, songs, and other titles, try the Junior Library Guild’s Storytime or Programming Pinterest boards.
DONOFRIO, Beverly. Where’s Mommy? illus. by Barbara McClintock. Random/Schwartz & Wade. 2014. ISBN 9780375944567. JLG Level: P : Primary (Grades K–1).
Maria and Mouse Mouse are friends. It’s a secret. What would their parents say if they knew that girls who were so different were pals? One summer evening, they discover their mommies are missing. A half empty coffee cup and a full thimble of tea leave the girls puzzled. Where can they be? Then Maria spots the empty peg for her mom’s sweater. Mouse Mouse sees that her mom’s poncho is missing as well. Where’s Mommy?
In the companion book to Mary and the Mouse, the Mouse and Mary (Random, 2007), readers uncover a secret. To discover more about the author, visit her website. Read about the illustrator on her website.
DUBUC, Marianne. The Lion and the Bird. Enchanted Lion. 2014. ISBN 9781592701513. JLG Level: K : Kindergarten (Grades PreK–K).
Lion finds a bird with a broken wing. He bandages the injury, but the flock flies on, leaving the little one behind. What else can he do, but invite the bird inside. Lion reads to the bird. They play together in the snow during the long winter. Finally spring arrives. It’s time for the bird to join his flock. Lion will miss his friend, but he understands. Then autumn returns and Lion gets a big surprise!
Read about the Canadian author and illustrator on her website. You’ll also find her blog, which is written in French. If that’s not your language, simply translate the page. For example, you can right click, choose translate with Bing, and voilà, the page is in English. Hover over the translation, and you can still see the original language.
GERSTEIN, Mordicai. You Can’t Have Too Many Friends! Holiday House. 2014. ISBN 9780823423934. JLG Level: P+ : Primary (Grades K–1).
“Once (maybe twice) there was a duck named Duck. He grew marshmallows, licorice whips, and assorted jelly beans.” The king heard about the prize winning sweets, so he paid Duck a visit, asking to borrow his jelly beans. Duck obliged, but after a year passed, he decided to get his beans back. On the way, he meets many friends and invites them to come along―after all, you can’t have too many friends!
Probably most known for his Caldecott-winning book, The Man Who Walked Between the Towers (Roaring Brook Pr., 2004), Gerstein’s adaptation is perfect for storytime. You’ll probably develop a sweet tooth for jelly beans in the process. Though they don’t really grow in the ground like other beans, you can watch a Discovery video about the process. The process actually allows one million jelly bean centers to be made each hour! There’s also more than one jelly bean song for learning colors.
MILLER, John. Winston & George. illus. by Giuliano Cucco. Enchanted Lion. 2014. ISBN 9781592701452. JLG Level: P+ : Primary (Grades K–1).
Playing pranks is fun to George. His best friend Winston is patient and loyal―even when the other crocodiles would like to eat the crocodile bird. Like the boy who cried wolf, George finally runs into real trouble when Winston’s snout is stuck in the mud. Will no one come and save him? Will his mischief-making ways cause the end of the poor crocodile?
The story behind the story is an amazing tale in itself. The author and illustrator actually collaborated on four books in the 1960s while Miller was working on a film in Rome. They were never published. Fifty years later, Enchanted Lion received the manuscripts and knew that the stories belonged with them. Publisher’s Weekly wrote a nice piece on the history of the long-lost picture books.
Additional Resources
In an effort to organize these links, I have created a LiveBinder. All websites will be posted within the LiveBinder, along with the accompanying booktalk. As I write more columns, more books and their resources will be added. Simply go to JLG Booktalks to Go where you will see LiveBinder main tabs. Each tab is a book title. Under each color-coded tab are gray subtabs with links to media, websites, and other related documents. Everything you need to teach or share brand new, hot-off-the-press books is now all in one place. Please visit JLG’s new LiveBinder, JLG Booktalks to Go.
For library resources, tips, and ideas, please visit JLG’s Shelf Life Blog.
Junior Library Guild (JLG) is a collection development service that helps school and public libraries acquire the best new children’s and young adult books. Season after season, year after year, Junior Library Guild book selections go on to win awards, collect starred or favorable reviews, and earn industry honors. Visit us at www.JuniorLibraryGuild.com. (NOTE: JLG is owned by Media Source, Inc., SLJ’s parent company.)