Books like Harvey's Hideout
By Lillian Hoban
For any house with a bossy big sister and a sulky little brother keeping score, this one names the fight without taking sides. Cozy, a little grumbly, ultimately tender — like a sibling truce forming in real time.
Two children in the segregated South spot a sign for a 'colored water' fountain and imagine something magical and rainbow-bright — only to discover a far harder truth about the world around them.
A toy bear waits on a department store shelf night after night, hoping someone will love him despite his missing button — until a little girl named Lisa decides he's exactly the bear she wants.
A little bird named Choco longs for a mother and searches among all kinds of animals, none of whom look like him, before finding one in a warm, unexpected shape.
A little girl can't join her mom on a trip, so she sends her toy dog Charlie the Cavalier in her suitcase instead, trusting him to keep her mom safe and close.
Three children and their pets meet up, becoming fast friends who play, squabble, laugh, and make up again, the way real friendships actually go.
A friendly zookeeper who's always on time oversleeps and misses his bus, putting a surprise he planned for his animal friends in jeopardy — so they set out to help him.
A gentle dog in a circus family of daredevils and acrobats tries to be strong, graceful, and brave like the others — but none of it feels like her, and she wonders if she belongs at all.
A boy named Dennis expresses everything through mime — silent, expressive, entirely his own way — until loneliness gives way to friendship when he meets a girl named Joy.
A shy mountain boy walks miles to a village school each day and is shunned as an outcast for years — until a new teacher, Mr. Isobe, finally notices what makes him remarkable.
A curious little penguin finds a lost pinecone in the snow and becomes fast friends, until Grandpa explains that pinecones belong in the warm forest, far from home.
A Pakistani-American girl is chosen as flower girl for her Auntie Laila's wedding, where her Auntie Amina paints intricate henna designs on her hands — but Nadia worries what her classmates will think on Monday.
A pampered tabby cat named Oliver is used to being the only pet in the house — until a baby rabbit named Marshmallow moves in and slowly, charmingly, wins him over.
