Love is one of those beautiful and amorphous things that it’s impossible to pin down, to define and, often, to communicate.
It’s tough to make a list of great books about love because love means so many different things to each person. Should I focus on treating people with love? Celebrating the things that people love to do? The way that love feels when you’re secure and cared for? Each of these books does a little bit of each of those things.
I also wanted to choose books that feel warm and safe, perhaps because it’s a cold, snowy day and I’m thankful to be inside with a hot cup of coffee, surrounded by books, telling you about a few that I think are special. It’s one of the things I love most.
What Is Love? by Mac Barnett, illustrated by Carson Ellis
A little boy goes to his grandmother and asks, “What is love?” She tells him that she cannot answer that; that he must go out into the world and find out. What follows is a journey through space and time that leads him right back to where he started. Mac Barnett is one of my favorite children’s book writers. He has the ability to take on something as big as love, veer through the silly and absurd, and still end up focusing on the simple and poignant truth that love is something different for everyone, often all around and right in front of us. Learning how to see it is the journey of a lifetime.
Saturday written and illustrated by Oge Mora
Ava and her mother look forward to Saturdays all week because it is the only day they get to spend together. This specific Saturday nothing goes to plan — the park is noisy and crowded, a bus splashes their new hair after a trip to the salon and Ava’s mom forgot the tickets to the puppet show back at their apartment. As their frustration builds, Ava’s mother finally gets so upset that she breaks down. After taking a breath, Ava calmly reminds her mother that the special thing about Saturdays is that they are together. It is lovely, and honest, and a powerful reminder as a parent that our children cherish time spent together most of all.
Astrid the Unstoppable by Maria Parr, translated from Norwegian by Guy Puzey
Astrid is the only child in Glimmerdal; her best friend is Gunnvald, her seventy-something-year-old neighbor, and they spend their days perfecting their sled design, making tweaks and changes in order to speed seamlessly through the town on the way down the mountain outside her home. Her life is upended when a new family arrives in town, and a mysterious letter arrives for Gunnvald. While Astrid is overjoyed to finally have playmates her own age, she also realizes that her best friend has been keeping a decades-long secret about his past. As the story unfolds, Astrid realizes that love and family are much more complicated than she ever imagined. This is a rich and warm story about mistakes, misunderstandings and second chances. Perfect for reading together on a snowy day with a cup of hot chocolate.
The Blue House written and illustrated by Phoebe Wahl
Phoebe Wahl is a special artist. Her books are magical, creating entire worlds for children to get lost in and explore. In The Blue House, Wahl tells the story of Leo, his father and the blue house that they love. They spend time in their garden in the summer and bake pies in the winter and have lots and lots of dance parties. One day, Leo’s father gets a call from the landlord; he has sold the house and it will be torn down. They feel devastated and angry and they express those feelings together. They listen to loud music and paint all over the walls of their beloved blue house. And then they move to a new house. One of my favorite things about this book is the relationship between Leo and his father. He supports Leo always and gives him space to feel all of the emotions that come with change. He creates a safe space for them to express those feelings together and to move forward. What a beautiful and rare expression of love.
And if you love Phoebe Wahl’s work as much as I do, make sure you check out Little Witch Hazel — one of our new favorites!
From the Tops of the Trees by Kao Kalia Yang, illustrated by Rachel Wada
Kao Kalia Yang was born in a refugee camp in Thailand. She spent the first seven years of her life within its fences. In her memoir, The Latehomecomer: A Hmong Family Memoir, she tells the story of her father taking her up into a tree in order to see the world outside of the fences. In From the Tops of the Trees she tells this story.
I took my daughter to see Kao Kalia Yang at Owen Park this fall, during the Chippewa Valley Book Festival. It was cold and there wasn’t a large crowd. When Yang got onto the stage, she read this book with such emotion and feeling that I found myself in tears. She is such a generous and special storyteller. She is connected to the people around her whether she’s in an auditorium full of engaged people, or in a small group of children in a park on a cold and windy fall day. The respect she shows all around her is humbling and I’m so grateful to her for sharing her life and stories.
– Margaret Leonard
Margaret Leonard is the owner 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.