5 Books on Love, Family and Friendship

At a dinner party the other night, the topic of the 5 Love Languages came up and it sparked a funny conversation. My friends and I tried to determine our own love language and others’ without reading the book or taking the quiz.

Do you know your love language or your child’s love language? The general idea of the book is that we all interpret and express love differently and we don’t always show our partner that we love him or her in the way that they innately feel loved.

The conversation got me thinking about Valentine’s Day and how our communication with one another is more important than candy hearts and crafts. Please don’t take that as a sign to hold the chocolate. My husband kindly refers to it as “mommy’s medicine." To take things a little deeper with my kids this year, I bought a couple of the following books for gifts. 

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That’s Me Loving You by Amy Krouse Rosenthal – If you loved “I Wish you More,” you will adore this new book from the same author. Don’t feel like a wimp if you cry, I can’t read it without thinking about sending my own children off to kindergarten or college someday. 

What Do You Love About You? By Karen Lechelt - A little girl asks each of her animal friends what they love most about themselves. The anteater loves his nose and the giraffe loves his neck. What a great reminder that we can be our own best friend.

You Belong Here by M.H. Clark – This book has stunning images of animals in their unique habitats. The illustrations are mostly black and white and very moving. While the entire story is about a kid, there are no pictures of humans in the book and it leaves room for the reader to imagine her own unique family. 

“And the trees belong in the wild wood and the deer belong in their shade, and the birds belong so safe and good and arm in the nests that they’ve made. And you belong where you love to be, and after each day is through you will always belong right next to me and I’ll belong next to you.”

The Friend Ship by Kat Yeh – Another tear jerker for me. When what you need is right in front of you, it can be easy to get lost looking for your missing piece in life. A story of gratitude and loyalty, this book is a beautiful tale of true love and can be related to family or friendship.

Be a Friend Salina Yoon – This book is about a boy who enjoys living life differently, as a mime. He feels lonely until he finds a friend who seems to understand him. The story helps kids think about the meaning and qualities that make up a strong friendship.