Books like Roger, the Jolly Pirate
By Brett Helquist
In Roger, the Jolly Pirate, the crew keeps sending Roger away because he's terrible at pirating, until his one jolly idea in the middle of a battle changes everything. Your kid gets why that moment matters. The books below are for kids who love watching the overlooked one finally get their moment.
A baby with a booming voice, a habit of giving away his birthday presents, and a strange love of chimneys grows up to become Santa — one odd little clue at a time.
While the Petersons are away, their house decides it deserves a vacation too — but its rooms can't agree on a destination until the sunporch votes for the beach and leads the way.
Roger finally gets to prove himself to the crew that dismissed him. Sophie's Masterpiece: A Spider's Tale by Eileen Spinelli stretches that same slow-earned acceptance over a whole lifetime.
Two best friends spend a week of summer vacation at Eamon's grandparents' house, supposedly for Nature Camp — but waffles, video games, and staying inside turn out far more interesting than nature ever was.
A bug-obsessed girl smuggles her insect friends indoors to keep the fun going during a big family reunion, with chaotic results — until Great-Gran turns out to share her passion.
A warrior princess wants nothing but a big, strong horse for her birthday, but the pony she actually gets is small, round, and gassy — and nothing like the fierce steed she imagined.
If your kid liked watching a pirate find his people, Cowboy & Octopus by Jon Scieszka is a friendship that makes even less sense on paper.
Three mysterious visitors crash-land in Mr. Li's field claiming to be from "Europe," and he welcomes them home, feeds them, and helps fix their "car" — no questions asked, even though they're clearly aliens.
An ordinary kid turns into Crankenstein when Valentine's Day rolls around, fed up with cheesy cards, itchy bouquets, and heart-shaped everything — but even a grump might find some love in there somewhere.
A crocodile mistakenly turns up under the tree on Christmas Eve and starts eating everything in sight — the roast, the stove, even the tree — while one girl fights to save him.
A young reindeer with a glowing red nose is teased and left out by the other reindeer, until a foggy Christmas Eve gives Santa a reason to need him most.
After spotting three dazzling mermaids on the subway, a boy transforms his home into a lagoon of imagination, fashioning his own mermaid costume from a curtain and some ferns.
