Kids Book Index
Matt de la Peña, illustrated by Loren Long
This picture book follows a child’s encounters with love in ordinary life. Its scenes include a child sharing food with a man who may be homeless and a police officer playing with children in park sprinklers. Another account describes a girl explaining her own understanding of love to her diverse family, connecting love with perspective and art.
This book appears on 1 reading list across 1 edition.
Carmela Full of WishesMatt de la PeñaOn her birthday, Carmela is old enough to accompany her big brother on family errands around their neighborhood. She rides her scooter while he pushes a cart through stops including a laundromat, locksmith shop, and bodega. When she finds a dandelion, he tells her to make a wish before blowing its seeds away. Carmela imagines wishes for her parents, but falls and crushes the flower before choosing one. Her brother later takes her to the sea, where drifting dandelion seeds give her another chance to wish.SOCIAL INTERACTIONS/RELATIONSHIPSLexile Text Measure 630LATOS Book Level 4On the same reading list for the same age or grade groupView book details
Mommy’s KhimarJamilah Thompkins-BigelowA young Muslim girl spends the day playing dress-up in her mother’s colorful khimars, the flowing scarves her mother wears. As she tries on the headscarves, she feels her mother’s love and explores her own identity. The story portrays the girl’s life within a diverse, welcoming community while centering the imaginative play and family connection she finds in her mother’s scarves.SOCIAL INTERACTIONS/RELATIONSHIPSOn the same reading list for the same age or grade groupView book details
Night JobKaren HesseOn Friday nights, a boy accompanies his father to the school where his father works as a custodian. They ride there by motorcycle, and the boy sometimes helps sweep the halls. He also shoots hoops, listens to baseball on the radio, reads in the library, and sleeps on a couch. During a late break, father and son share egg-salad sandwiches before riding home together.SOCIAL INTERACTIONS/RELATIONSHIPSLexile Text Measure AD920LATOS Book Level 3.4On the same reading list for the same age or grade groupView book details