Saadia Faruqi shares recommendations for good books that help us empathize more deeply with those dealing with mental illnesses, whether it’s ourselves or someone else. Then Ann Braden shares her conversation with librarian Kathie MacIsaac, a librarian in Manitoba and a mover and shaker in the online middle grade community.
Saadia’s Recommendations
THE VERY CRANKY BEAR written and illustrated by Nick Bland
THE PRINCESS AND THE FOG written and illustrated by Lloyd Jones
WEMBERLY WORRIED by Kevin Henkes
DANNY AND THE BLUE CLOUD written by James Foley and illustrated by Shirley Benitez.
THE COLOR THIEF: A FAMILY’S STORY OF DEPRESSION written by Andrew Fusek Peters and Polly Peters, and illustrated by Karin Littlewood
MEH by Deborah Malcolm
WHERE THE WATERMELONS GROW by Cindy Baldwin
THE THREE RULES OF EVERYDAY MAGIC by Amanda Rawson Hill
THE SCIENCE OF BREAKABLE THINGS by Tae Keller
JUST LIKE JACKIE by Lindsey Stoddard
FINDING PERFECT by Elly Swartz
THE GOLDFISH BOY by Lisa Thompson
FINDING AUDREY by Sophie Kinsella
ALL THAT I CAN FIX by Crystal Chan
CHALLENGER DEEP by Neal Shusterman
DARIUS THE GREAT IS NOT OKAY by Adib Khorram
THE DISTURBED GIRL’S DICTIONARY by Noneiqa Ramos
Kathie MacIsaac’s Recommendations**
**Find Kathie on Twitter at @kmcmac74 and on Instagram at @the_neverending_stack. Make sure to also check out the great work that The MG Book Village is doing!
THE RECKONER Series: STRANGERS, MONSTERS, & GHOST by David Alexander Robertson
OCDANIEL by Wesley King
SOME KIND OF HAPPINESS by Claire LeGrande
AFTER ZERO by Christina Collins
STANLEY WILL PROBABLY BE FINE by Sally J. Pla
THE SPINNER OF DREAMS by K.A. Reynolds
GOOD ENOUGH by Jen Petro-Roy