A Book of Friends

Author:Dave Ross

Type or emotional/crisis issue(s) addressed: Making Friends

Year of Publication:1999

Publisher & Location:Harper Collins,

ISBN#: 0060283629

Target Age Level: Beginning

# of Pages: 40

Quality of Illustrations: Great

Brief Summary: This picture book discusses the many different kinds of friends someone can have pen pals, best friends, imaginary friends, family, new friends and old friends, etc. The author gives suggestions on how to be a good friend that could be very useful to children who are learning the basics of interaction in groups.

Personal Comments/Biases, and/or Things to Consider When Using This Book With Children: The illustrations are bright and fun. Young children will enjoy reading this book.

Activity: Children could discuss ways they have been a friend to someone. They also could set a goal of one way they could make a new friend.

Do You Want To Be My Friend?

Author: Eric Carle

Type or emotional/crisis issue(s) addressed: Making Friends

Year of Publication: 1988

Publisher & Location: Scholastic (in cooperation with Harper Collins Publishers), New York, NY

ISBN#:

• ISBN13: 9780399215988
• ISBN: 0399215980
• BINC: 338420

Target Age Level: Pre-K & Lower Elementary

# of Pages: 28

Quality of Illustrations: Classic Eric Carle

Brief Summary: A little mouse goes from animal to animal, trying to find a friend, until he at last finds one. Aside from "Do you want to be my friend?" at the beginning and "yes" at the end, this story contains no words. Rather, it is left up to the reader to interpret the story based on the pictures.

Personal Comments/Biases, and/or Things to Consider When Using This Book With Children: The wordless format makes this book ideal for bibliotherapy. As the therapist and child progress through the pages, the child will be able to reveal his/her thoughts/feelings by commenting on the actions, thoughts, and feelings of the mouse and the animals he/she encounters.

Activity: "Reading" this book can be an activity in and of itself, as the content of the story can change every time you read it. As you go through the book, consider the child you are working with and ask questions accordingly, such as "what does _______ tell the mouse?" or "how does that make the mouse feel?" or "what does the mouse think of that?" or "what does the mouse say to _______?" Also, if you have more than one child that you are working with, you can act out the story with costumes and/or puppets.

Tobin Learns To Make Friends

Author: Diane Murrell

Type or emotional/crisis issue(s) addressed: Making Friends, keeping friends, Friendship, Manners, Rules

Year of Publication: 2001

Publisher & Location: Future Horizons, Inc., Arlington, TX

ISBN#s:

• ISBN13: 9781885477798
• ISBN: 1885477791
• BINC: 7104044

Target Age Level: Pre-K and Lower Elementary

# of Pages: 31

Quality of Illustrations: rough, child-like drawings and coloring (basic)

Brief Summary: Tobin is a lonely red engine who cannot seem to make friends. But with the help of his buddies, he discovers that there are little things he can do to be nicer to those around him. Tobin soon finds that he is surrounded by friends who truly enjoy working and playing with him. Parents and teachers can use this book to teach friendship skills to children who find social interactions challenging. Important social lessons include: sharing, being polite, taking turns, talking quietly, the importance of personal space, and more! NOTE: This book was written by a mother of a child with Asperger's Syndrome to teach him how to make and keep friends, building upon his interest in trains.

Personal Comments/Biases, and/or Things to Consider When Using This Book With Children: This book is fairly straight-forward and has titles, like "Friendship" and "Borrowing," etc. every few pages so that the user can turn to the section that is most helpful for the child at the time. It can be read as an entire story, or used in sections to teach social skills. This book "says it like it is" when it comes to friendship rules, adopting a structure often used with the Power Cards strategy developed for individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorders. Because of this, some of the friendship rules are listed in a positive light (like "take turns") while others are stated negatively (like "don't interrupt"), which might turn some people away from this book. The structure is very much a direct teaching format, presumably to help the author's son, the inspiration for the book, learn the skills well.

Activity: Write down each of the things Tobin does (good choices and bad choices alike) on pieces of paper, have the kids each choose one (one at a time), and state if that is something that will help them make friends or if it is something that will cause them to lose friends.

The Berenstain Bears and the Trouble with Friends

Author:Stan and Jan Berenstain
Type or emotional/crisis issue(s) addressed: making and keeping friends
Year of Publication: 1987
Publisher & Location:Random House New York
ISBN#: 0394873394

Target Age Level: 4-8
# of Pages:32 pages
Quality of Illustrations: it's beartastic
Brief Summary: The new cub in the neighborhood, Lizzy Bruin, is the same age as Sister Bear--and she's also just as bossy. After a fight threatens their budding friendship, both cubs learn that you can't always have your own way if you want to have friends.

Personal Comments/Biases, and/or Things to Consider When Using This Book With Children:
This is a great kids book that helps kids look outside their own need.

Activity: Talk about what you look for in a friend, and then write a list of ways you can be a friend like you want.

A Bad Case of Tattle Tongue

Author: Julia Cook (Author), Anita DuFalla (Illustrator

Type or emotional/crisis issue addressed: Difficulties making and keeping friends
Year of Publication: 2005
Publisher and Location: Puffin
# ISBN-10: 1931636869
# ISBN-13: 978-1931636865
Target Age Level: Ages 4-8 Kindergarden, Low Elementary
# of Pages: 32
Quality of Illustrations: Very Good

Brief Summary: Josh the Tattler doesn't have any friends. He tattles on his classmates, on his brother, and even on his dog! He tattles so much that he wakes up one night to find that his tongue is yellow, unusually long, and covered in bright purple spots! .

Personal Comments/Biases, and/or Things to Consider When Using This Book With Children:
Parents who "battle the tattle" at home, on the playground, in the grocery store, or anywhere else, can use this book to both entertain and enlighten their children about "The Tattle Rules." Every adult that desires to help children understand the differences between unnecessary tattling and the necessity of warning others about important matters can benefit from this book.

Activity: Read out Loud
Posted by Nalu de Araujo Nunes

Tacky, the Penguin

Author: Helen Lester

Type or emotional/crisis issue addressed: insensitivity for individual and group differences.

Year of Publication: 2006
Publisher and Location: Houghton Miffin/Walter Lorraine Books - Boston, MA
ISBN-10: 0618737545
Target Age Level: 4-8 Kindergarden
# of Pages: 32
Quality of Illustrations: Excellent

Brief Summary:
Tacky doesn’t behave like the other penguins and his friends finds him annoying. But his unique personality and out-of-the-box thinking saves the penguin community.

Personal Comments/Biases, and/or Things to Consider When Using This Book With Children:
It’s a lesson of tolerance on differences and an inspiration to enjoy the uniqueness on every human being.

Activity:
Have children measure items in the room with different penguin feet, then write/illustrate in journals about what they did.
Posted by Nalu de Araujo Nunes

Making Friends

Author: Fred Rogers
Type or emotional/crisis issue addressed: Making Friends
Year of Publication: 1987
Publisher and Location: The Putnam & Grosset Group, New York, NY
ISBN# 0399213821
Target Age Level: Elementary
# of Pages: 32
Quality of Illustrations: Photographs
Brief Summary: The book describes the process of making friends. Friends share lots of things, they do fun things together, and sometimes they don’t agree. Sometimes friends can make each other angry. However, friends can also forgive each other.
Personal Comments/Biases, and/or Things to Consider When Using This Book With Children: It’s a great book to help children learn how to make friends.

Activity: The child could talk about things they can do with their friends.

What Every Kid Should Know

Author: Jonah Kalb & David Viscott, M.D.
Type or emotional/crisis issue(s) addressed: Parent/child relationship problems, feelings, making friends, self-esteem, divorce
Year of Publication: 1976
Publisher & Location: Boston: Houghton Mifflin
ISBN#: 0395629837 
Target Age Level: Late elementary, junior high
# of Pages: 127
Quality of Illustrations: some simplistic sketches added throughout
Brief Summary: Discusses the problems of growing up and gives suggestions on coping with various emotions, understanding oneself, getting along with others, and dealing with parents.
Personal Comments/Biases, and/or Things to Consider When Using This Book With Children: Written in 1976, so may be a bit outdated.

Activity: Have the student compile a "Bill of Rights for Kids" like was done in the book. He/she makes a list of rights that are important to him/her (examples include "right to pick my own friends," "right to privacy," "right to my own opinion). Discuss each one and why that is important. Talk about how the student could discuss these rights with his/her parents, especially when they disagree.

Danny Diamondback

Author: Barry E. Jackson
Type or emotional/crisis issue(s) addressed: Difficulties making friends
Year of Publication: 2008
Publisher & Location: New York: Harper Collins Publishers
ISBN#: 9780061131844
Target Age Level: Lower elementary
# of Pages: 40
Quality of Illustrations: Excellent
Brief Summary: A lonely young rattlesnake finds that making friends in the desert is not as easy as he originally thought it would be. When one prairie dog discovers that Danny can add great rhythm for his band, Danny joins the Hoppin' Jalapenos. Unfortunately, Danny loses his disguise in his excitement while playing & scares off all the animals. Later Danny is able to come to the rescue and scare off a band of coyotes. He is hailed as a hero and lives with the other small animals.
Personal Comments/Biases, and/or Things to Consider When Using This Book With Children: A bit simplistic. Also, unclear if children can related to Danny's reasons for having trouble making friends. 

Activity: Have the children make a list of their own unique talents, strengths, or interests that could help them make friends.

Crash

Title: Crash

Author: Jerry Spinelli

Type or emotional/crisis issue(s) addressed: Bullying

Year of Publication: 1997

Publisher & Location: Random House Children’s Books

ISBN#: 9780679885504

Target Age Level: upper elementary, middle school

# of Pages: 176

Quality of Illustrations: none

Brief Summary: Crash Coogan is a star athlete, a jock, and in the popular crowd. Crash is also a bully. This humorous story is told from the viewpoint of the bully, offering a unique perspective and insight into why bullies may act as they do. However, Crash realizes that his behavior is not making him into the person he would like to be. He takes some bold and surprising steps to change who he is.Personal Comments/Biases, and/or Things to Consider When Using This Book: none

Post Reading Activities: Discuss reasons for bullying. Discuss how home issues, like parent-child relationships, can influence bullying behavior. Compare and control how the main character changed throughout the novel and how his behavior affected his happiness.

The Divorce Express

Title: The Divorce Express

Author: Paula Danziger

Type or emotional/crisis issue(s) addressed: Divorce, parent-child relationships

Year of Publication: 2007 (reprint)

Publisher & Location: Penguin Young Readers Group

ISBN#: 9780142407127

Target Age Level: Upper Elementary, Junior High

# of Pages: 148

Quality of Illustrations: none

Brief Summary: Phoebe’s parents have recently been divorced. That means she now needs to ride “the divorce express”, a bus form the suburbs to the New York City. This book follows Phoebe’s thoughts and emotions as she tries to understand and deal with the separation of her parents and the resultant changes in her life.

Personal Comments/Biases, and/or Things to Consider When Using This Book: This book is well written and talks about real life situations involving parental separation and divorce. Parents of some children may not want their children to read this book.

Post Reading Activities: Have students compare and contract the similarities and differences between Phoebe’s parents divorce and the child’s parents divorce. You may also want to select some passages that describe Phoebe’s emotions and then have the child describe how their emotions are similar or different.

Everyone Else's Parents Said Yes

Title: Everyone Else’s Parents Said Yes

Author: Paula Danziger

Type or emotional/crisis issue(s) addressed: Parent-child relationships

Year of Publication: 1998

Publisher & Location: Penguin Group

ISBN#: 9780698116870

Target Age Level: Upper Elementary

# of Pages: 128

Quality of Illustrations: none

Brief Summary: Matthew is about to have a birthday party and plans to throw himself the biggest birthday bash ever. The only problem is that his parents are not too pleased with his plans for the party. The discussions include what activities the boys will participate in and what food will be allowed at the party. Amidst the planning, Matthew runs into problems with all the girls in his grade. Eventually, Matthew and his parents resolve their differences- each of them compromising.

Personal Comments/Biases, and/or Things to Consider When Using This Book: This book felt like it was written by an adult. Some of the situations and discussions seemed

Post Reading Activities: Students could write about a time when they disagreed with their parents. Have them retell the story using descriptive words that would help a reader understand the emotions the student felt during the situation. A teacher may then want to conduct a discussion about reasons that parents and children may disagree. Conflict resolution techniques could also be taught and role played.

Enrico Starts School

Type of emotional/crisis issues addressed: MAKING FRIENDS

Author/authors: Charlotte Middleton

Year of Publication: 2004

Book Title: Enrico Starts School

ISBN #: 0803730179; 9780803730175

Age Level: PreK; Lower Elementary

# of pages: 28

Quality of illustrations: Original, vibrant illustrations with funny captions placed aside to elaborate on the pictures.

Brief Summary: Enrico can do many things, he can ride his bike with no training wheels, he could make sandwiches, so now Enrico was ready to start his first day of school. Enrico goes to school without any idea of how to make friends. He tries to join in on games, share his lunch, make his own roller skates, but nothing works, until he decides to just “be himself.” Then he meets Pepe and they become best friends. All of this because he stops trying so hard and just tries to be himself.

Post reading activity: Give the kids free time in class to practice “being themselves,” have them choose to do anything that they want to do for 10 minutes and then bring them together again and discuss how they felt when they did what they wanted to do instead of what other people wanted to do. Teach the kids that part of making friends is having fun doing what you like to do and finding people that like to do those things too!

Being Bindy

Author: Alyssa Brugman

Type or emotional/crisis issue(s) addressed: Friendship, Divorce, Bullying

Year of Publication: 2006

Publisher & Location: Delacorte Books for Young Readers

ISBN#: 0385732945

Target Age Level: Jr. High, High School

# of Pages: 208

Quality of Illustrations: None

Brief Summary: Set in Australia. Bindy is in 8th grade. Janey, her best friend growing up, has decided that Bindy isn’t cool enough anymore. Janey ditches her for a new “cooler friend”. Janey’s new friends dress provocatively, smoke pot, and are very mean. Janey humiliates Bindy a few times, and it very mean and hurtful.
Bindy’s parents are divorced. Bindy struggles with her relationship with her mother. Bindy’s father starts to date Janey’s mother which puts further strain on Bindy and Janey’s relationship. Bindy does have a support system of her father, brother, and two new friends.

Personal Comments/Biases, and/or Things to Consider When Using This Book With Children: There is some vocabulary and references that may not be understood due to it being written by an Australian author.

Activity: Discuss the struggles Bindy has when her "best friend" changes. (It's a very typical experience for teen age girls.) The student could identify the feelings that Bindy is experiencing and relate it to their own experiences.

Amazing Gracie

Author: A.E. Cannon

Type or emotional/crisis issue(s) addressed: Mental illness of a parent, family financial problems, suicide

Year of Publication: 1991

Publisher & Location: Dell Publishing, New York, New York

ISBN#: 0440215706

Target Age Level: Jr High, High School

# of Pages: 214

Quality of Illustrations: None

Brief Summary: (Set in American Fork and Salt Lake City, UT )Gracie’s father died when she was four, so it’s been her and her mother ever since. Gracie looks a lot like her mother, but she’s afraid she’s like her in other ways. Cynthia, Gracie’s mom, struggles with depression. She had to go to the state hospital when Gracie was seven. Gracie has felt it her duty to keep her mother happy. Cynthia gets remarried to Pete who sometimes seems irresponsible. Gracie has to adjust to a new step-father and step-brother. Pete moves the family to Salt Lake City so he can pursue his multi-level marketing career. This should help Cynthia with her depression, but it doesn’t. She spirals down until she attempts suicide. Gracie finds her lying on her bed. Cynthia is taken to the hospital where she stays for a while. She eventually returns and there is hope that she will be able to control her depression.

Personal Comments/Biases, and/or Things to Consider When Using This Book With Children: The characters are very real and believable. It could be very applicable to students in this area as it is set in American Fork and Salt Lake.

Activity: Have students identify what Gracie is experiencing with a mother who suffers from depression. Identify how she handles the responsibility and her feelings towards her mother when she attempts suicide.

The Lonely Little Monster

Author: Andi Green

Type or emotional/crisis issue(s) addressed: Loneliness, Making Friends

Year of Publication: 2007

Publisher & Location: Monsters in My Head, LLC

ISBN#:

• ISBN-10: 097928600X
• ISBN-13: 978-0979286001

Target Age Level: Lower Elementary, Upper Elementary

# of Pages: 67

Quality of Illustrations: Creature is different but illustrations are colorful and fun.

Brief Summary: Though The Lonely Little Monster begins with a traditional “Once upon a time,” what follows is anything but pedestrian. Nola has never ventured beyond her remote desert home, and her heartsick isolation pervades the watercolor landscape, practically engulfing her. Ironically, Nola’s flood of tears reveals some new friends who were there all along—she had only to look beyond herself.

Personal Comments/Biases, and/or Things to Consider When Using This Book With Children: Non-threatening book for kids. I also like that it deals with depression as well.

Activity:
1. Read story
2. Have kids talk about and possibly draw what is outside of them and then what is inside of them.
3. Take kids for walk outside (if good weather) and have them notice what is around them.
4. Have kids lay down inside (or oustide, if appropriate) and notice how they feel inside
5. Talk about making friends and how to "look beyond themselves."