Join us for the our Children's Mental Health Matters Book Club!
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- Conversation prompts provided for each age group to help adults, children and youth have meaningful conversations about the content presented each month
Early Childhood
- When Sophie Gets Angry - Really, Really Angry by Molly Bang
- Walter Was Worried by Laura Vaccaro Seeger
Elementary School
Just Ask! Be Different, Be Brave, Be You By Sonia Sotomayor and Illustrated by Rafael Lopez
The following books are recommendations and the Children's Mental Health Matter's Campaign does not hold responsibility for the content. Please make all considerations before reading the suggested books. There are links provided to look over book reviews and additional information.
Middle School
Wonder by R.J. Palacio
In this popular chapter book that spurred the “Choose Kind” movement in classrooms, a boy with a facial deformity switches to a mainstream school for the fifth grade and is bullied. “But he has a strong network of family and friends to help him overcome bullying,” says an expert at the Child Mind Institute. “Ultimately, the readers will see how differences should be celebrated.”
High School
Anxiety Relief for Teens by Regine Galanti, PhD
Clinical psychologist Regine Galanti has spent her career helping teens manage anxiety through cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) and mindfulness techniques, and she brings that approach to readers in this accessible and compassionate guide. With opportunities for reflection, CBT-based tools, and mindfulness practices, readers can tailor Galanti’s advice to their own needs and readiness.
Early Childhood
I Am! Affirmations for Resilience by Bela Barbosa & Edel Rodriguez
Elementary School
The Good Egg by Jory John & Pete Oswald
The following books are recommendations and the Children's Mental Health Matter's Campaign does not hold responsibility for the content. Please make all considerations before reading the suggested books. There are links provided to look over book reviews and additional information.
Middle School
The Science of Breakable Things by Tae Keller
Using the scientific method, Natalie tries to solve her mom’s depression. She theorizes that a trip will cure her mom’s stay-in-bed-all-day blues. To get money for the trip, Natalie must win an egg drop contest — for which she also applies the scientific method. As events unfold in the competition and at home, Natalie realizes that neither life nor depression is an exact science... and that depression doesn’t have a quick fix.
High School
How to Make Friends with the Dark by Kathleen Glasglow
After her mother dies, grief pulls Tiger into a deep sadness. Moving between foster care families, she deals with food issues, domestic violence, mental illness, and alcoholism. Eventually, she finds a home with a long-lost sister. Her journey illuminates her mom’s mental illness and shows Tiger’s resiliency as she copes with grief, loss, and a new family.
Early Childhood
All Kinds of Kindness by Julie Carey Nevin
Elementary School
Today I Feel Silly & Other Moods That Make My Day by Jamie Lee Curtis
Emotion Resources
The following books are recommendations and the Children's Mental Health Matter's Campaign does not hold responsibility for the content. Please make all considerations before reading the suggested books. There are links provided to look over book reviews and additional information.
Middle School
Joey Pigza Swallowed the Key by Jack Gantos
They say I'm wired bad, or wired sad, but there's no doubt about it―I'm wired." Joey Pigza's got heart, he's got a mom who loves him, and he's got "dud meds," which is what he calls the Ritalin pills that are supposed to even out his wild mood swings. Sometimes Joey makes bad choices. He learns the hard way that he shouldn't stick his finger in the pencil sharpener, or swallow his house key, or run with scissors. Joey ends up bouncing around a lot - and eventually he bounces himself all the way downtown, into the district special-ed program, which could be the end of the line. As Joey knows, if he keeps making bad choices, he could just fall between the cracks for good. But he is determined not to let that happen.
High School
The Seventh Most Important Thing by Shelley Pearsall
In a fit of rage after his father’s death, Arthur hurls a brick at the “Junk Man,” a local trash picker. Instead of time in juvie, a judge gives him 120 hours of community service — with the man he hurt. Arthur is tasked with finding the Junk Man’s list of the Seven Most Important Things. This highly engaging and emotional story teaches major life lessons about redemption and the power of kindness as well as shows the potential of recovery from grief.