Special Reading Lists

Coping With Death

       
There are few things in life more difficult than explaining death to a child, and all too frequently this task falls on a family member already struggling with their own grief. The following list contains books which can be of benefit during this difficult time by helping to explain the impossible and help make grief more bearable. As with any difficult subject matter, please check over the list carefully and select the books which reflect most closely your family beliefs and values.

This section is divided by subject matter to help you select the proper category:

Death of a Parent:

Mother

Father

Both Parents

Death of a Grandparent:

Grandmother

Grandfather

Death of a Sibling:

Baby Brother

Baby Sister

Brother

Sister

Twin Brother

Death of a Friend

Death of a Teacher

Death of a Pet

For The Parent

DEATH OF A MOTHER

Fiction for children:

Adler Carly’s Buck
Bohlmeijer Something Very Sorry
Cleaver Grover
DeClements The Fourth Grade Wizards
DeVinck Augusta & Trab
Farmer Thicker than Water
Griffiths Rafa’s Dog
Holland Of Love & Death & Other Journeys
Kaplan The Empty Chair
Leonard Saving Damaris
Mann There are Two Kinds of Terrible
Passey Speak to the Rain
Phipson A Tide Flowing
Stolz The Edge of Next Year
Wilson Robin on His Own

For the older child:

Brooks Two Moons in August: A Novel
Conly Crazy Lady!
Halvorson Cowboys Don’t Cry
Hirsch Ellen Anders On Her Own
Lehne Coyote Girl
O’Neal A Formal Feeling: A Novel
Porte Something Terrible Happened: A Novel

DEATH OF A FATHER

Fiction for children:

Clifton Everett Anderson’s Goodbye
Cleaver A Little Destiny
DeFelice Devil’s Bridge
Hunter A Sound of Chariots
Hurwitz Ozzie On His Own
Little Mama’s Going to Buy You a Mockingbird
Patterson Flip-Flop Girl
Polikoff Life’s a Funny Proposition, Horatio
Strete The World in Grandfather’s Hands
Wallace-Brodeur The Kenton Year

For the older child:

Asher Missing Pieces
Baird Walk Out a Brother
Blume Tiger Eyes
Christiansen A Small Pleasure
Colman Sometimes I Don’t Love My Mother
Grove The Crystal Garden
Maguire Oasis
Martin With You & Without You
Pfeffer Sybil at Sixteen
Roberts Secrets at Hidden Valley
Thesman Nothing Grows Here

DEATH OF BOTH PARENTS

Fiction book for children:

Kidd Onion Tears

For the older child:

Brenner A Killing Season
Mazer When the Phone Rang
Tolan Who’s There?

DEATH OF A GRANDMOTHER

Picture books for children:

Anderson The Key Into Winter
Caseley When Grandpa Came to Stay
Hathorn Grandma’s Shoes
Hoopes Nana
London Liplap’s Wish
Nodar Abuelita’s Promise
Whelan Bringing the Farmhouse Home

Fiction for children:

Clifford The Remembering Box
Coutant First Snow
Holl The Rose Beyond the Wall
Miles Annie & The Old One
Slepian The Broccoli Tapes
Sorenson The Secret Letters of Mama Cat
Willner-Pardo Hunting Grandma’s Treasures

For the older child:

Bacon Shadow & Light
Murphy Gold Star Sister

DEATH OF A GRANDFATHER

Picture books for children:

Cazet Christmas Moon
Engel Eleanor, Arthur, & Claire
Fox Sophie
Yolen Grandad Bill’s Song
Zolotow My Grandson Lew

Fiction for children:

Brooks Everywhere
Brooks A Blossom Promise
Donnelly So Long, Grandpa
Forward Traveling Backward
Jukes Blackberries in the Dark
L’Engle A Ring of Endless Light

For the older child:

Mazer After the Rain

DEATH OF A SIBLING

Baby Brother

Fiction for children:

Cleaver Belle Pruitt

For the older child:

Pershall You Take the High Road

Baby Sister

Fiction for children:

Ellis A Family Project

Brother

Fiction for children:

Alexander Nadia the Willful
Fletcher Fig Pudding
Killien Artie’s Brief: The Whole Truth & Nothing But
Laird Loving Ben
Lorentzen Lanky Longlegs
Marino Eight-eight Steps to September
Osborne Run, Run, as Fast as You Can

For the older child:

Cameron Beyond Silence
Naughton My Brother Stealing Second
Park Mick Harte Was Here
Russell Last Left Standing

Sister

Fiction for children:

Greene Beat the Turtle Drum
Lee The Magic Moth
Lowry A Summer to Die
McCord Turkeylegs Thompson

Twin Brother

Fiction for children:

Carner Tawny
Little Home From Far

DEATH OF A FRIEND

Fiction for children:

Barford Let Me Hear the Music
Martin Mary Anne & the Memory Garden
Paterson Bridge to Terabithia
Rock The Thanksgiving Treasure
Smith A Taste of Blackberries
Wangerin Potter, Come Fly to the First of the Earth
White Charlotte’s Web

For the older child:

Chambers Dance on My Grave: A Life & a Death in Four Parts
Hesse Phoenix Rising
Hill See ya, Simon
Oughton Music From a Place Called Half Moon
Peck Close Enough to Touch
Randall All The Sky Together

DEATH OF A TEACHER

Zindel A Begonia for Miss Applebaum

DEATH OF A PET

Fiction for children:

Carrick The Accident
Cohen Jim’s Dog Muffins
Dabcovich Mrs. Huggins & Her Hen Hannah
Ehrlich Maggie & Silky & Joe
Gackenbach Do You Love Me?
Graeber Mustard
Howard Murphy & Kat
Hurd The Black Dog Who Went Into the Woods
Lyon Ada’s Pal
Orgel Whiskers, Once & Always
Tobias Petey
Viorst The Tenth Good Thing About Barney
Wallace-Brodeur Goodbye Mitch
Wild Toby
Zolotow The Old Dog

FOR THE PARENT

Goldman Life and Loss: A Guide To Help Grieving Children
Jewett-Jarrett Helping Children Cope with Separation and Loss
LeShan When a Parent is Very Sick
Fry Part Of Me Died, Too: Stories of Survival Among Bereaved Children & Teenagers
Fry The Kid’s Book About Death & Dying
Krementz How it Feels When a Parent Dies
Mellonie Lifetimes: A Beautiful Way to Explain Death to Children
Prestine Helping Children Cope with Death: A Practical Resource Guide for Someone Special Died (book follows)
Prestine Someone Special Died
Richter Losing Someone You Love: When a Brother or Sister Dies
Rogers When a Pet Dies
Schaefer How do We Tell the Children? A Parent’s Guide to Helping Children Understand & Cope When Someone Dies
Stein About Dying: An Open Family Book for Parents & Children
Weitzman Let’s Talk About When A Parent Dies
       
Expect the best from your kids … and you’ll get it!
       
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