Divorce Recommended Books for Children Facing Divorce

Laurene Krasny Brown and Marc Brown, DINOSAURS DIVORCE: A Guide for Changing Families.Little, Brown and Company, 1986. pb. ISBN 0316112488

Perhaps the best-known of the books for children, it is written for parents going through divorce to read to their young children. It explains the divorce process through the story of a dinosaur family going through divorce.

This book has some real, firsthand advice from those that know exactly what it’s like to have your parents divorce. The author interviewed nineteen kids, aged seven to sixteen, from different background about what it feels like to be in the middle of a divorce. Through pictures of the children and their stories told in their own words, the author presents the pain and resilience of children going through divorce. Again, a good book because it is the children’s own words.

Vicky Lansky, IT’S NOT YOUR FAULT, KOKO BEAR. Book Peddlers, 1998. ISBN 0916773477.

This is designed as a ‘read-together book’ for parents and young children. It is a nicely illustrated book that attempts to make divorce less emotionally burdensome for young children and, at the same time, teach important parenting skills to divorcing spouses. The children’s story follows a young bear cub, Koko, whose life is disrupted by divorce. Koko is told about the divorce, witnesses Papa Bear move out, and ultimately learns to adjust to life in both homes. Koko is reassured the divorce is not the cub’s fault and come to learn that while Mama Bear and Papa Bear are divorced from one another, they are not divorced from Koko. In small print at the bottom of the non-illustrated pages are helpful suggestions for parents.

Sara Bonkowski, KIDS ARE NONDIVORCEABLE: A WORKBOOK FOR DIVORCED PARENTS AND THEIR CHILDREN (AGES 6-11). ACTA Publications, 1987. ISBN 0915388316.

This ‘workbook’ is great for parents and their children. It has exercises for kids and advice for parents going through a divorce.