Mother’s Day is coming up on May 8th this year! We have a lot of great picture books for kids about his holiday, but what if you’re looking for a book that is a little more unique and inclusive of different kinds of families? Here are some to consider!
Grandma’s Purse by Vanessa Brantley-Newton (2018).
Sometimes grandmas can play a big motherly role in a child’s life. In this book, a young granddaughter has a blast looking through Grandma Mimi’s purse full of treasures.
Hero Mom by Melinda Hardin (2013).
This book celebrates moms who serve in the military – from flying planes to making tanks roll, they are superheroes to their children.
Just Like a Mama by Alice Faye Duncan (2020).
Carol Olivia Clementine lives far away from her Mommy and Daddy. She wishes they were together. But right now she has Mama Rose, who cares for her – just like a mama.
Mama and Mommy and Me in the Middle by Nina LaCour (2022).
When Mommy goes off on a work trip, a little girl stays at home with just Mama and counts down the days until their family can be reunited once again.
Mama’s Nightingale: A Story of Immigration and Separation by Edwidge Danticat (2015).
Saya’s mother is incarcerated in an immigration detention center and keeps a connection with her daughter by sending cassette tape recordings of her own retellings of Haitian folktales.
My Maddy by Gayle E. Pitman (2020).
Hazel eyes are not quite brown and not quite green. And some parents are not quite women like mommies and not quite men like daddies. This little girl’s Maddy is something entirely their own.
Stella Brings the Family: A Tale of Two Dads on Mother’s Day by Miriam B. Schiffer (2015).
When Stella’s class has a Mother’s Day celebration, she’s not quite sure what to do. Her Daddy and Papa are the ones who love and take care of her. But she finds a unique solution in this sweet picture book.
Happy reading, and happy Mother’s Day!
-Teresa Moulton, children’s librarian and Public Service Leader
