Children's books about Memorial Day
Ten Titles on Tuesday: 5/18/21
This week’s Ten Titles, never in any particular order:
Hair Twins by Raakhee Mirchandani
Prince & Knight: Tale of the Shadow King by Daniel Haack (if you don’t know Haack’s prequel to this one — the sweet, super refreshing reboot on the traditional fairy tale love story, Prince & Knight — I recommend it)
From Here to There by Margery Cuyler
There’s a Tiger in the Garden by Lizzy Stewart
The Imaginary Garden by Andrew Larsen
The Seed of Compassion: Lessons from the Life and Teachings of His Holiness the Dalai Lama by His Holiness The Dalai Lama
What I Like Most by Mary Murphy
Tell Me a Mitzi by Lore Segal
The Sea Chestby Toni Buzzeo
Bird House by Blanca Gómez
Mini issue: Memorial Day
There are a lot of things I remember about my childhood, but chief among them was my dad saying — all day on Memorial Day and frequently throughout the rest of the year — that “Memorial Day is about the dead.”
I come from a military family, with veterans from all four branches every which way you look — three out of my four grandparents (including my 100yo grandmother who was the first woman in her county to enlist), my dad, my uncle, my husband, my father-in-law, my dear lifelong friend — so I’ve overheard every variation of “thank you for your service.” And don’t get me wrong, those words are important (I can’t say the recipient in my home always agrees but they are important nevertheless). What my dad meant when he tried to teach me about Memorial Day was that it’s not Veterans Day — the former is our chance to remember the millions of men and women who have died while serving, and the latter is an opportunity to recognize all those who have served in war or peace, dead or alive. Honor each, and respect the difference.
Recently when my newly-7yo was asking me what Memorial Day is, I caught myself chanting, “Memorial Day is about the dead!” (That feeling when you realize you’ve turned into your parents 🤦🏻♀️ The repetition worked, Dad! I was listening, and this tiny part of your legacy will live on). I am careful, when talking and reading to my children on this topic, to explain this delineation. It may not matter to you, but it does to me.
Beyond the tiny list below there are many more great books appropriate for Veterans Day and/or talking about military service in general (which I will be sure to mention come November), but these focus on remembrance of the fallen and the lost:
Proud as a Peacock, Brave as a Lion by Jane Barclay
The Wall by Eve Bunting
Twenty-One Steps: Guarding the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier by Jeff Gottesfeld
Rolling Thunder by Kate Messner
America’s White Table by Margot Theis Raven
The Poppy Lady: Moina Belle Michael and Her Tribute to Veterans by Barbara E. Walsh
There are nuances to each of these titles — Rolling Thunder, a moving rhyming recounting of the annual Rolling Thunder Ride for Freedom motorcycle gathering at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. is specific to the Vietnam War; America’s White Table explains the tradition of “the white table” set on Veterans Day in the mess halls of all four branches of the military to honor POW/MIAs and the dead — meaning they generate questions that might be difficult to answer (not a bad thing, in my mind, for any book). But in contrast to the much less solemn tones of most of the books about military service in general, they’re just right. They are about why and how we remember, and strike a good — and to me, necessary — balance in the presentation and discussion of one of our biggest military holidays.
Read good books and take good care 😘
Sarah
@can_we_read