List
Big Topics for Little Kids: Absent Family Members
Whether it's incarceration, a job, the military, deportation or another reason for a child to be missing a loved one while they are away, these books help to normalize the situation and help kids feel seen. Part of the Big Topics for Little Kids series, these books are for sharing with kids in grades PreK-2nd.
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When Mom's Away
2021 by Ahmad, LaylaGet this itemDuring the pandemic, a little girl's mom is a doctor who needs to quarantine and sleeps in the garage to keep her family safe.
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Across the Bay
2019 by Aponte, CarlosGet this itemCarlitos's observation that his family doesn't look like others prompts him to begin a search for his father.
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Knock Knock: My Dad's Dream for Me
2013 by Beaty, DanielGet this itemA father and son's relationship is strong despite the father's incarceration.
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Far Apart, Close in Heart: Being A Family When A Loved One Is Incarcerated
2017 by Birtha, BeckyGet this itemHelps children identify their emotions and suggests ways to communicate their feelings about having an incarcerated family member.
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Walk With Me
2017 by Buitrago, JairoGet this itemA little girl imagines a lion taking the place of her father who no longer lives with her family, who keeps her safe on her travels from school to home.
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Mama's Nightingale: A Story of Immigration and Separation
2015 by Danticat, EdwidgeGet this itemSaya's mother is being detained as an undocumented immigrant so Saya writes her a story that just might have the power to bring her home.
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Mango Moon
2019 by De Anda, DianeGet this itemWhen their father is deported, the family's love helps keep them together.
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Milo Imagines the World
2021 by de la Peña, MattGet this itemWhile Milo and his sister travel to a detention center to visit their incarcerated mother, he observes strangers on the subway and draws what he imagines their lives to be.
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I Love You More Than
2018 by Diggs, TayeGet this itemA father reassures his young son that although they cannot always be together, he misses his baby boy and always thinks about him.
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Just Like A Mama
2020 by Duncan, Alice FayeGet this itemFor now, Mama Rose gives Carol Olivia Clementine all the love she has to give.
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Missing Daddy
2019 by Kaba, MariameGet this itemA child narrator describes the emotions and feelings she has surrounding her father's incarceration.
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The Invisible String
2000 by Karst, PatriceGet this itemThis is a sweet story assuring little ones that no matter how far away your loved one is, you're always connected.
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Papa Brings Me the World
2020 by Kostecki-Shaw, Jenny SueGet this itemA father's job takes him away for long periods of time but he always comes home.
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Sometimes Love
2022 by Moore, KatrinaGet this itemWhen her mother is deployed overseas, a young girl is parted from her and her beloved dog.
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A Card for My Father
2018 by Thornhill, SamanthaGet this itemA young girl grapples with how to make a Father's Day card for a father she has never known.
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Visiting Day
2002 by Woodson, JacquelineGet this itemA young girl and her grandmother visit the girl's father in prison.
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