As the summer approaches, so too does moving season. While May is officially National Moving Month, most experts agree that the busiest season for moving in the U.S. is between May and September. And while moves can be exciting, they can also be difficult for youngsters who have to face leaving behind their school, friends, and neighborhoods. To help with that transition, we’ve gathered ten picture books that explore the bittersweet emotions involved in moving house and offer encouragement for little readers who may be struggling with big changes.
Home Is a Wish by Julia Kuo
The young narrator of this title opens with a simple description of home as a place: “In the mornings we leave home, and in the evenings we return.” However, one day, the family packs all their things in preparation to leave home and never return. As the child helps to move boxes and flies across the sea on an airplane, they muse that home has become a wish; when they arrive in a strange new city, they wonder how this place could ever feel like home. Kuo’s delicate prose and evocative art beautifully capture the liminal feeling of leaving one home and attempting to acclimate to another, adding in warm moments of family and a hopeful yet honest epiphany to end on: life will often be a series of homes, but each home can be a wish that comes true.
We’re Moving House by Mick Jackson, Illustrated by Rashin Kheiriyeh
When the child protagonist at the center of this cheerful story hears that their family is moving house, they could not be more excited! After all, moving their entire house to its new location must be a massive undertaking; they’ll probably need cranes, a very big truck, or perhaps a boat or helicopter! However, when the child learns that their house — the only one they’ve lived in so far — will be left behind when they move, moving doesn’t sound nearly as fun. This title strikes a lovely balance of kid-friendly silliness and genuine comfort, allowing some laughs before the heavier themes of moving anxiety are approached, and most youngsters will identify with the sadness of leaving a house they love. However, this one ends on a classic message: as long as you have the people you love with you, you’re home.
A Book of Maps for You by Lourdes Heuer, Illustrated by Maxwell Eaton III
A surprising and fresh twist on the moving book, this one begins with the young narrator explaining that they have made a book of maps. The reader soon finds that within its pages are detailed maps, first of the entire town, then of a single street, then of buildings — the school, the library, the art supply store — and then the cartographer’s house. Each map is lovingly detailed, introducing the map reader to details like the school nurse who gives out stickers and lollipops, or the Little Farm that has a pony named Celestia. Finally, it’s revealed that these maps were left as a present for the new residents of the narrator’s home after they’ve moved, “so you’ll find your way in your new home.” A touching look at what a move can represent from both perspectives, and a heartwarming lesson in kindness and town pride.
Firefly Season by Cynthia Leitich Smith, Illustrated by Kate Gardiner
The highlight of young Piper’s summers is when she spends a month with her cousins and relatives on the border of the Cherokee and Muscogee Nations, visiting family on both. She fishes and plays with the other kids, learns Indigenous stories and culture from the elders, and learns to speak Mvskoke. It’s always a little sad when she and her parents drive back to Kansas City, but this year, she gets a surprise: a new neighbor named Sumi, who is eager to become friends. The girls play and share their respective cultures over the year, and then Piper is hit with sad news: their family will be moving to Topeka. Faced with the loss of her young friend, Piper doesn’t know what to do… until it is revealed that her and Sumi’s parents have made plans for the girls to stay connected.
You Are Home by Bex Tobin Fine, Illustrated by Andrés Landazábal
Home can be many things: for one of the child protagonists in this tale, it’s a pop-up camper van; for another, it’s a new apartment after moving from far away; for the third, it was a cozy bungalow, until that home was lost in a fire. As all three children meet at school, they slowly become friends as the questions about the definition of home become more abstract. Is home a place or a building? Is it a feeling or a thought? Or is it when we are with the people who make us feel happy and safe? A fascinating and affirming exploration of the concept of home that can be especially meaningful for kids who, like two of the three friends, live in nontraditional housing or have had to move because their previous home was lost in less than ideal circumstances.
The Peanut Man by Carmen Agra Deedy, Illustrated by Raúl Colón
One of the hardest things about moving can be the loss of familiar faces and routines. Set in 1960s Cuba, young Coqui looks forward to her nightly ritual with kindly Emilio, the Peanut Man. As the vendor makes his rounds, Coqui stands at her window making funny faces and calling out nonsense words, and Emilio does the same, and they both laugh. That is, until the evening that Coqui’s mom tells her that they will be fleeing to Los Estados Unidos, and Coqui is heartbroken to leave her home and her friend. Emilio does his best to console her, pointing out that in the United States, she will get to see lots of baseball games (her favorite sport). Lo and behold: many months later, at a baseball game in her new home of Georgia, Coqui finds a familiar smell and makes an unexpected new friend, assuring young readers that while moves may leave behind friends, those friends and the memories shared are never forgotten.
Paper Planes by Jim Helmore, Illustrated by Richard Jones
Mia and Ben are best friends. They share everything, especially their greatest passion: aeronautics. Making paper and model planes, they race their creations against flying geese and dream of one day making a plane that can fly all the way across the lake. Yet their idyllic friendship is suddenly dealt a heavy blow: Ben breaks the news that his family is moving very far away. The pair promise to remember each other and stay friends, but as the seasons change, Mia begins to feel even lonelier, hurt, and sad. In a rage, she smashes the model plane Ben had given her as a goodbye present and feels even worse. That night, however, something magical happens: the plane is restored and able to fly Mia across the sea to visit Ben in her dreams. And when she wakes, she finds that, even through distance and strain, great friendship is worth working on.
A Home Again by Colleen Rowan Kosinski, illustrated by Valeria Docampo
A brand-new house eagerly awaits its new owners, and once the family of six (including kitty and baby-to-be) arrives, the house relishes the sounds and smells that fill its once-empty rooms. It delights in watching the family grow and in being such an integral part of their memories, of being cared for and loved. The house is more than a house; it is a home… until the family must move away. Hurt and confused, the house pushes away prospective new owners by making itself creak or lose shingles in their presence, resulting in its sitting empty and alone for a long time. At last, a couple arrives and sees the house’s potential. It tries to push them away as it did the others, but the couple is determined, and they slowly bring the house back to good condition with work and care. And against all odds, the house begins to hope once more to be part of a family… to be a home.
The Moving Book by Lisa Brown
Sometimes the best way to make a new experience feel less scary is when someone explains exactly what to expect. Following the format of her previous titles, The Airport Book and The Hospital Book, Brown reintroduces the brother and sister pair from those stories as big bro talks his younger sibling through their impending move. After all, while she may not remember it, their family has moved a lot, each time into a home that was better suited to their needs, and each one with its own quirks and pleasant surprises. Taking his sister and the reader through all the steps to expect — packing up boxes, loading the truck, etc. — he assures her that it’s perfectly normal to be nervous or sad about moving (even he is sometimes). Full of both practical information and comforting sentiments, this makes for a great guidebook to help ease young worries about heading to a new home.
Goodbye, Old House by Margaret Wild, Illustrated by Ann James
While moves can bring sadness, it’s also perfectly normal for kiddos to feel excited. As the spritely young narrator of this tale explores their “old” house, they take their time to say goodbye to all the spaces and activities that they loved — fishing in the river, petting the pony, eating at the table — for the last time. While it’s clear the child loves the home they are leaving, their tone is positive and hopeful, and is mirrored nicely when they arrive at their new home and explore the area. Suddenly, their life is filled with firsts: the first time climbing a particular tree, petting a new cat, and perhaps even meeting a friend. James’s art is positively charming, and Wild’s text strikes a perfect tone for those who are feeling the mix of sentimentality and enthusiasm for their own move.
We hope that you and your young reader enjoy these picture books on moving, and that they provide some comfort during the transition of moving. Happy reading!
Want more picture books that can help kids settle into a new home or school? Check out our article How to Make Friends: 7 Helpful Picture Books for Little Readers.
To see all of our recommendations for mini bookworms, check out our Bookshop bookshelf.
