For many people all over the world, 2020 was a very challenging year.
People faced isolation, loneliness, illness, loss, discrimination and so many other trials. I understand why many might feel short on hope these days.
I believe that the days that feel most hopeless are the days when we must cling hardest; to a pink-purple winter sunset, an encouraging text message from a friend we haven’t seen in months, one last gingerbread cookie, warm mittens, a good night of sleep, a great book.
If, like me, you feel that hopelessness has made it even more difficult to care for and parent the children in your life this year, here are a few books to share that might help start 2021 in a positive way. Let them sink into your bones — they are just as much for you as they are for your kids.
Ray written and illustrated by Marianna Coppo
Ray is a light bulb who is stuck in a closet. It’s not all bad: He has a spider friend, sometimes the little boy who lives in his home hides out and builds a fort. Mainly, though, he’s bored. When the light is on, which isn’t a whole lot, he counts the forty-one things inside of his closet. When it’s dark, his mind is empty. Then, one day, the father unscrews Ray, carries him to the car with his son and his dog, and drives out into the wilderness. When they arrive, Ray is screwed into a lantern, and the father and son carry him on their hikes. He lights their campsite, and then, he watches the stars. As the sun rises, he’s stunned by its beauty. Ray is never the same after that; he may be back in the closet, but his mind is full of adventure, beauty and the rising sun. Marianna Coppo’s Ray is all about changing your perspective and being ready to embrace new things. Then, when you get back home, your mind is bigger and more open, ready to focus on all of the things you’ve seen and will see someday. It’s a wonderful reminder that, even when we’re stuck inside or away from some of the people that we love, we always carry them with us.
The Sea in Winter by Christine Day
Maisie Cannon dreams of becoming a ballerina. Dancing is her sanctuary. But after a knee injury threatens that dream, her pain begins to affect more than her knee. The uncertainty of her future creates a deep sadness that she just can’t seem to overcome. Christine Day sensitively tells a story of depression caused by the changes that all middle schoolers face, and exacerbated by a terrible injury that may alter Maisie’s future plans. Maisie also bears the subconscious trauma of losing her father in Afghanistan before she was able to meet him, and the generational trauma many Indigenous Americans deal with when their right to land and territory is severed by colonizing society. Maisie’s resilience in the face of terrible circumstances is inspiring and full of hope, and the support that she receives from her loving family, as well as the destigmatizing of mental health issues and therapy, make this book a must-read for middle schoolers and their parents.
What’s My Superpower? by Aviaq Johnston, illustrated by Tim Mack
What’s My Superpower? introduces readers to Nalvana, a young Inuk girl who desperately wants a superpower. Every day, playing outside in the snow or on the playground or by the water, Nalvana notices all of her friends’ special powers. Maata can fly; Davidee can run very, very fast; Joanasie can build and carve anything. Nalvana is quick to praise her friends, pointing out their superpowers to them and celebrating their incredible skill. Every day, when she comes home, she tells her mom all about her powerful friends, and every day she wonders when she will find her own superpower. Finally, on a day when Nalvana is feeling particularly discouraged, her mother tells her that her superpower is making others feel good about themselves — the most important superpower of all! Our family has fallen in love with Nalvana. We hope you do too.
Aviaq Johnston is an Inuk writer and she includes Inuktitut words in her book with a glossary at the back. If you’d like to hear a native Inuktitut speaker reading What’s My Superpower?, make sure you check out Julie’s Library. Actress Miali Buscemi reads the book and Aviaq Johnston talks about what it was like to grow up in a town very similar to Nalvana’s called Igloolik.
There Must Be More Than That! written and illustrated by Shinsuke Yoshitake
I often try to imagine the events of this past year through the lens of my four-year old daughter. There have been many days when her father and I have been huddled around our news podcasts, trying to stay up-to-date to ensure that we’re making safe and healthy decisions for our family, listening to election results, mourning the racism and discrimination that plagues our society. Some days must feel so scary and dangerous for her. Plus she’s not even allowed to go to school or the playground to play with her friends.
If your house has been at all like ours, this is the book of 2021!
There Must Be More Than That! is about a little girl’s refusal to believe that everything is terrible and will always be terrible. She refuses to accept that there are only two possibilities: good and bad, boiled and fried, dog or cat. Why not a lobster? Why can’t her grandma live to be 300 — or at least never stop living each day as if there are endless possibilities? Why throw away shoes when they can be used as planters? Why can’t there be aliens? This book is charming and funny and encourages children to focus on all of the wonderful things that could happen right alongside the bad things that will happen too. It’s a manual for hope through the eyes of a child.
– Margaret Leonard
Margaret Leonard is the owner, along with Jill Heinke Moen, of Dotters Books, an independent bookstore in Eau Claire. The shop, which specializes in books by a diverse range of authors, began as a book club and opened its doors in the fall of 2018. Follow Dotters Books on Instagram and Facebook.