Looking for a book about divorce for a child? Use this list to get started.

Tough Topics—Divorce

Books listed are for ages 3 to 12. Please return when finished!

Divorce is the Worst by Anastasia Higginbotham

“A lovingly crafted picture book speaking to the child's perspective on divorce. The book offers advice, sympathy, and wit to match without being pandering or authoritative."

Call number: J 306.89 Higg

Suggested for ages 4 to 8.

The Island of Dr. Libris by Chris Grabenstein

“A twelve-year-old boy, worried that his parents may divorce, discovers that an island in the middle of the lake where he is spending the summer is the testing grounds of the mysterious Dr. Libris, who may have invented a way to make the characters in books come alive.”

Call number: J Grabenstein, C.

Suggested for ages 8 to 12.

A Brighter Tomorrow: My Journey with Julie by Megan McDonald

“What if you suddenly found yourself in Julie's world--sunny San Francisco in the 1970s? Your journey back in time can take whatever twists and turns you choose, as you select from a variety of options in this multiple-ending story.”

Call number: J Choose

Suggested for ages 8 to 10.

I Have Two Homes by Marian De Smet

“A young girl recounts her feelings about her parents' divorce. Everything is different from the way it was, and sometimes the behavior of the adults around her is upsetting to Nina. This honest, uncomplicated account of divorce from a child's point of view will reassure and comfort young readers.”

Call number: E Smet, M.

Suggested for ages 5 to 7.

Living with Mom and Living with Dad by Melanie Walsh

“A little girl describes what her life is like now that her parents no longer live together.”

Call number: E Walsh, M.

Suggested for ages 3 to 7.

Olivia Bean, Trivia Queen by Donna Gephart

“After overcoming a number of obstacles, especially in the subject of geography, Olivia is on her way to Hollywood to appear on Jeopardy! and, she hopes, to reunite with her father who left the family two years ago.”

Call number: J Gephart, D.

Suggested for ages 9 to 12.

Lost! A Dog Called Bear by Wendy Orr

“When Logan's dog runs away as he and his mother are moving to a new home after his parents separate, a girl named Hannah, who longs for a dog of her own, finds him.”

Call number: J Orr, W.

Suggested for ages 7 to 10.

Mom and Dad Don’t Live Together Anymore by Kathy Stinson

“A classic and critically acclaimed picture book, newly illustrated, takes a positive, sensitive and reassuring look at divorce as experienced by young children.”

Call number: E Stinson, K.

Suggested for ages 4 to 5.

The Best of Both Nests by Jane Clarke

“Stanley the stork is upset when his parents divorce and his father goes to live in a separate nest.”

Call number: E Clarke, J.

Suggested for ages 3 to 7.

Julie Tells Her Story by Megan McDonald

“In 1974 at her new San Francisco school, nine-year-old Julie does not want to tell her class about her parents' divorce, or to tell her sister about messing up her school assignment, but when she breaks her finger and her whole family rallies around her, she realizes the importance of telling the truth.”

Call number: J American Girl

Suggested for ages 8 and up.

Two Homes by Claire Masurel

“A young boy named Alex enjoys the homes of both of his parents who live apart but love Alex very much.”

Call number: E Masurel, C.

Suggested for ages 3 to 7.

Amelia in Speak Softee to Me by Jimmy Gownley

“When Amelia's divorced father invites her friends along on their father-daughter camping trip, she does not respond graciously.”

Call number: J GN Gownley, J.

Suggested for ages 8 to 11.

What Would J oey Pigza Do? by Jack Gantos

“Joey tries to keep his life from degenerating into total chaos when his mother sends him to be home-schooled with a hostile blind girl, his divorced parents cannot stop fighting, and his grandmother is dying of emphysema.”

Call number: J Gantos, J.

Suggested for ages 10 to 14.

Amelia’s Family Ties by Marissa Moss

“Ten-year-old Amelia records her thoughts and feelings about flying solo to Chicago to meet the father she has not seen since her parents divorced when she was an infant.”

Call number: J GN Moss, M.

Suggested for ages 7 and up.

I, Amber Brown by Paula Danziger

“Because her divorced parents share joint custody of her, nine-year-old Amber suffers from lack of self-esteem and feels that she is a piece of jointly-owned property.”

Call number: J Danziger, P.

Suggested for ages 7 to 10.