Books like The Thing Lou Couldn't Do
By Ashley Spires
In The Thing Lou Couldn't Do, Lou can outrun airplanes and rescue wild animals, but when her friends want to turn a tree into a pirate ship, she suddenly needs to walk her cat instead. Any kid who's stalled before a climbing wall will recognize that excuse-making instantly. The books below are for kids working up their own nerve.
Same big-sister bravado that turns out to have limits, but Sheila Rae, the Brave by Kevin Henkes flips who ends up needing rescue.
Where Lou talks herself out of the tree, Scaredy Squirrel by Mélanie Watt builds an entire emergency kit to avoid ever leaving home.
Same nervous holdout who'd rather stay put, but The Koala Who Could by Rachel Bright rhymes its way through the stalling instead of listing excuses.
If your kid liked watching Lou talk herself into brave, Ol' Mama Squirrel by David Ezra Stein flips it around: the grown-up is the fierce one this time.
Lou freezes at a tree; Franklin's Halloween by Paulette Bourgeois has Franklin convinced a ghost is real, and his friends stick around anyway.
Shorter and gentler than Be Brave Little Penguin by Giles Andreae, this one's built for the toddler not quite ready for a full chapter of stalling.
Lou has to face one tree, but Brave Irene by William Steig sends its girl through an actual snowstorm with real stakes riding on it.
Fans of Lou's inner monologue will notice After the Fall (How Humpty Dumpty Got Back Up Again) by Dan Santat doing the same work through pictures more than words.
No rhymes, no jokes here. The courage in The Paper Boat: A Refugee Story by Thao Lam is quieter and bigger, told entirely through pictures.
Lou's fear gets talked through step by step, but The Squeaky Door by Margaret Read MacDonald solves bedtime fear by piling animals into one bed instead.
Less about being scared of a tree, more about being brave enough to help someone dangerous. Doctor De Soto by William Steig widens the idea of courage.
Reach for Jabari Jumps by Gaia Cornwall right before an actual pool day, when your kid needs Jabari's stalling tactics for real.
