June is the month of love. This month we’re excited to celebrate Father’s Day and Pride! Share the love with your kids by reading these books that celebrate.
babies/tots
Daddy Speaks Love
By Leah Henderson
Illustrated by E. B. Lewis
Nancy Paulsen Books, 2022, $17.99
Acclaimed Washington author Leah Henderson recounts the many ways that fathers show love, from sharing hugs and adventures to speaking out against social injustice and helping to build a better world. Shimmering watercolors by artist extraordinaire E. B. Lewis beautifully complement the uplifting, lyrical text. A perfect read-aloud for Father’s Day – and all year round.
ages 4 – 8
Wombat Underground
By Sarah Thomson
Illustrated by Charles Santoso
Little, Brown, 2022, $18.99
In this true survival story, a burrow-dwelling wombat emerges as an accidental hero during a brush fire in Australia. Racing to escape flames, a skink, a wallaby and an echidna seek refuge in the wombat’s cool underground warren. Apparently, wombat burrows helped save many animals in the brush fires of 2019-2020, which decimated more than 25 million acres of land.
Alexander von Humboldt: Explorer, Naturalist & Environmental Pioneer
By Danica Novgorodoff
Random House, 2022, $17.99
An avid observer of the natural world, Alexander von Humboldt noticed as a child in Europe that animals and plants in a particular region were connected and interdependent – an observation that held true even as he explored South America and Mexico as an adult. Vibrant art and text reveal how this great 19th century naturalist became known as the Father of Ecology.
ages 9 – 12
Detour Ahead
By Pamela Ehrenberg and Tracy Lopez
PJ Publishing, 2022, $9.99
Blending humor and heart, this engaging novel chronicles the evolving friendship of a neurodivergent Jewish girl and a Salvadoran-American boy who has recently moved to Washington, D.C. Riding the H4 bus in the mornings to their different schools, they learn about and begin to encourage one another’s passions – Gilah, breakdancing; Guillermo, poetry – and to offer support as each wrestles with performance anxiety. Readers familiar with our nation’s capital will get a kick out of landmarks such as Dupont Circle, the National Zoo and Busboys and Poets.
The Rainbow Parade
Written and illustrated by Emily Neilson
Penguin Random House, $17.99
Ages 2-5
One day in June, little Emily takes the train into the city with Mommy and Mama to attend the Rainbow Parade. But when Mama suggests they join the parade, Emily isn’t so sure about joining the throng … “The Rainbow Parade” is the perfect picture book for the youngest of readers and their family to learn about Pride and what it means to them! This joyful and affirming picture book about a family’s first Pride parade reminds all readers that sometimes pride takes practice and there’s no “one way” to be a part of the LGBTQ community. Available wherever books are sold.
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