Best New Children’s Books about Friendship: August 2018

Best New Children’s Books about Friendship: August 2018

Best New Picture Books about Friendship

Here are the Best New Children’s Books about Friendship released August 2018. This list was assembled by Editors of Amazon Children’s Books department.

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See also: Children’s Books About Anxiety: Helping Your Anxious Child

Kristy’s Big Day (The Baby-Sitter’s Club Graphix #6): Full-Color Edition

by Ann M. Martin (Author), Gale Galligan (Illustrator)
Release Date: August 28, 2018

Kristy’s mom is getting married, and Kristy is chosen to be a bridesmaid! At the same time, fourteen kids are coming to town for the wedding. Kristy and the rest of the baby-sitter’s club think they can handle it, but that’s before they spend a week changing diapers, resolving arguments, ironing out minor mix-ups, and planning activities for the kids. It’s the biggest job the Baby-Sitter Club has ever had, but they’ll join forces to make sure Kristy’s big day is a success! This is one of the best new children’s books about friendship to be released this August.

Get it on Amazon! 

The Day You Begin

by Jacqueline Woodston (Author), Rafael Lopez (Illustrator)
Release Date: August 28, 2018

The Day You Begin centers on Angelina who has big curly hair and brown skin. She walks into her classroom and nobody is quite like her. While her classmates excitedly share their summer travels, Angelina can only remember her days spent at home caring for her little sister. Clearly, she isn’t quite like everyone else. Three other children experience more direct teasing for their outsider status. There is Rigoberto, a recent immigrant from Venezuela. There’s a Korean girl and her “too strange” lunch of kimchi, meat, and rice. Then there’s a lonely white boy who gets excluded from a game at recess because of his ability differences.

The Day You Begin is about feeling different, fearing the differences, but finally finding one’s own voice. It is about finding the friendships that emerge when you are yourself.

(This book is also available in Spanish, as El Día En Que Descubres Quién Eres!)

Get it on Amazon! 

See also: More Children’s Books About Anxiety

Eva’s Big Sleepover: A Branches Book (Owl Diaries #9)

by Rebecca Elliot (Author)
Release Date: August 28, 2018

It’s almost time to celebrate Eva’s birthday. She is so excited about the sleepover party that she is going to have. She and her friends enthusiastically plan for the whole party. But one of her friends, Sue, doesn’t seem to want to come. The party won’t be complete without Sue! But does she really not want to come? Or is she having first-time sleepover jitters? Eva needs to help Sue get over her fear in time for the big sleepover!

Get it on Amazon! 

Fancy Nancy and the Quest for the Unicorn

by Jane O’Connor (Author), Robin Preiss Glasser (Illustrator)
Release Date: August 21, 2018

Nancy and Bree are unicorn experts. Which means that they know everything there is to know about them. One day, they decide to go on an epic quest to find one. But Freddy and JoJo want to join in the search.

Together, they follow trails of glitter. After searching everywhere, Freddy and JoJo complain that they are tired. But Nancy and Bree will not quit. They continue to search high and low. And guess what they discover?

Get it on Amazon! 

Nowhere Boy

by Katherine Marsh (Author)
Release Date: August 7, 2018

This is one of the best new children’s books about friendship. It is the story of a Syrian boy from Aleppo fleeing war. It is also the story of a White American boy who is struggling at his new school.

Fourteen-year-old Ahmed lost his father on the perilous journey crossing the Mediterranean. All alone and broke in a foreign country, he takes matters into his own hands to get to safety. However, he ends up having to hide in the basement of a house in Brussels, Belgium.

Max is a thirteen-year-old boy from Washington D.C. He is the son of a NATO contractor. Lonely and homesick, he is experiencing his own set of troubles moving to a new country, learning a new language, and being teased at school. Inevitably, Max discovers Ahmed hiding in the basement. They took a liking to each other because of their similar age, integrity, and courage. Along with their new friends, Farah, a Muslim Belgian girl, and Oscar, a white Belgian boy, they plot for Ahmed to go to school while he remains in hiding. Together, Max and Ahmed defy the odds while learning from each other what it means to be brave and how hope can change one’s destiny.

Get it on Amazon! 

Ivy and Bean One Big Happy Family (Book 11)

by Annie Barrows (Author), Sophie Blackall (Illustrator)
Release Date: August 28, 2018

Vanessa tells Ivy that only children are spoiled. Ivy, being an only child, decides that she doesn’t want to be spoiled. She takes steps to prevent this from happening. First, she has this great idea to give away her clothes and favorite headbands to her classmates. But her teacher, Ms. Aruba-Tate, is not happy with the idea, and makes her take everything back. Next, she and her ever-ebullient friend Bean try to bring Ivy’s doll Zellaphine to life. When that doesn’t succeed, they try dancing and calling to the gods in the park — also not quite a success. Ivy tries several other ways to prove to Vanessa that just because she is an only child, she doesn’t have to be spoiled. Eventually, she gets her classmate to see it her way.

Get it on Amazon! 

Adrian Simcox Does NOT Have A Horse

by Marcy Campbell (Author), Corinna Luyken (Illustrator)
Release Date: August 14, 2018

A young girl named Chloe learns that, sometimes, it is more important to be kind than to be right.

Chloe is a brutally practical young girl. When she hears Adrian Simcox tell everyone who will listen that he has a horse — the best and most beautiful horse anywhere, she feels irritated. Chloe uses logic to figure out that Adrian is lying. She calls him out at school, enumerating the many reasons why Adrian cannot possibly own a horse. She even complains about him to her mom. However, Chloe doesn’t get the vindication she craves. She gets something far more important. The tale is poignant, at times slightly humorous, and honestly didactic. The art is simply excellent, masterfully using color to distinguish and then blend the worlds of the two main characters.

This book is a very good conversation starter for use with children who share Chloe’s privilege. It is one of the best new children’s books about friendship released this August.

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Big World! Big Adventures! The Movie (Thomas & Friends) (Little Golden Book

by Golden Books (Author), Tommy Stubbs (Illustrator)
Release Date: August 21, 2018

This is a new and updated story of Thomas & Friends(TM) movie adventure!

Thomas the Tank Engine’s latest adventures take him to places he never dreamed he’d visit! Train-loving boys and girls ages 4 to 7 will be excited to read about the new faces and places Thomas meets on his travels far from the Island of Sodor. They will also read about his new international friends.

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Teach Your Dragon to Make Friends: A Dragon Book To Teach Kids How To Make New Friends. A Cute Children Story To Teach Children About Friendship and Social Skills. (My Dragon Books) (Volume 16)

by Steve Herman (Author)
Release Date: August 7, 2018

Having a pet dragon is fun.

You can teach your dragon to sit, stand, roll over, and you can even potty train him.

But what if your dragon feels lonely because he doesn’t have many friends? What if he’s sad because nobody wants to play with him?

What do you do?

You teach him how to make friends!

How do you do it? – Get this book now and find out how!

Get it on Amazon! 

Wish Upon a Sleepover

by Suzanne Selfors (Author)
Release Date: August 7, 2018

Leilani is hapa haole, part white, part Hawaiian. Her goal is to become one of the Haileys, the most popular girls in her class. To show the Haileys that she is fun, Leilani throws a Hawaiian luau-themed sleepover. Unfortunately Tutu, her grandmother, accidentally mails Leilani’s invitations to the DO NOT INVITE list: her older cousin who farts, Manga girl (aka Tanisha) who draws mean pictures of her, and the new boy who has selective mutism. At least her best friend August will be there. Bored and hungry, the group of misfits decides to make great-grandmother Tutu’s recipe for sleepover soup. It is reputedly a magic soup that will grant their wishes but requires each of them to add a special ingredient. The scavenger hunt reveals unexpected truths about each of them. Overall, the story is about not judging others, showing empathy, and friendship.

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Finding Esme

by Suzanne Crowley (Author)
Release Date: August 7, 2018

Esme is twelve years old and lives on a peach farm in Texas. She lives with her stoic grandmother Bee, her mother June Rain, and her little brother. Her father ran off three years ago, and her grandfather, Paps, died of a heart attack three months ago. His tractor still sits on the spot where he died. Curling up beneath the tractor in search of some piece of Paps, Esme spies a bone sticking up out of the earth. At first, she is terrified by the find. She later enlists a friend to uncover what turns out to be a dinosaur skull. Is it a sign from her grandfather? Should she dig them up to save her family financially?

The reader gains many deep insights into a girl whose father abandoned her, has a mother who is struggling with mental health issues, and a grandmother who is the glue that keeps the family together. Moreover, her friend Finch is always by her side ready to support her. This book has everything, including mystery, suspense, action, and even a bittersweet ending. It is a good choice for students in grades 4 – 7 who are looking for a magical story, with a lot of love and adventure mixed in.

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