{"id":22226,"date":"2017-05-08T09:00:12","date_gmt":"2017-05-08T14:00:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.allaboutlearningpress.com\/?p=22226"},"modified":"2025-11-19T14:35:38","modified_gmt":"2025-11-19T20:35:38","slug":"picture-books-differences","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.allaboutlearningpress.com\/picture-books-differences\/","title":{"rendered":"Picture Books that Celebrate Differences"},"content":{"rendered":"

We\u2019re all different, but encouraging children to embrace their differences and the differences of others isn\u2019t always easy. Picture books can help! Here are some of my favorite picture books that celebrate differences.<\/p>\r\n\r\n

Download our free library list<\/a> to take with you on your next visit to the library.<\/p>\r\n\r\n

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A Bad Case of Stripes<\/cite><\/span>
<\/a>by David Shannon<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Camilla loves<\/span> lima beans, but she wants to be just like all the other kids, even if that means never eating lima beans again. Then one morning Camilla wakes\u00a0up with a bad case of stripes, and no one can\u00a0figure out why. Maybe what Camilla needs is just to be herself..<\/span>.and maybe what she needs is a big plate of lima beans.<\/p>\r\n <\/div>\r\n \r\n

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Chowder<\/cite><\/span>
<\/a>by Peter Brown<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Chowder isn\u2019t normal; everyone says so. That is, everyone except his owners. When Chowder is out and about, all he gets are strange looks. At home, he\u2019s happy and content, even if he is<\/em> kind of lonely. So when Chowder discovers a way to make friends, he jumps at the chance. Literally.<\/p>\r\n <\/div>\r\n \r\n

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Exclamation Mark<\/cite><\/span>
<\/a>by Amy Krouse Rosenthal<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Sometimes it\u2019s hard to fit in, but it's especially difficult when you\u2019re an exclamation mark on a page full of periods.\u00a0No matter what he does, Exclamation Mark just seems to stand out. But then he meets a new friend and begins to realize that standing out may not be so bad after all. In fact, standing out is FANTASTIC!<\/p>\r\n <\/div>\r\n \r\n

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Fanny<\/cite><\/span>
<\/a>by Holly Hobbie<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Fanny wants a Connie doll just like her friends have. In fact, it\u2019s all she wants for her birthday. Fanny begs and pleads, but her mother is firm. Connie dolls are \u201cjust too \u2026 much.\u201d So Fanny decides to make her own doll. Annabelle isn\u2019t at all like the Connie dolls, but Fanny made her, and that makes her marvelous<\/span>.<\/p>\r\n <\/div>\r\n \r\n

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Froodle<\/cite><\/span>
<\/a>by Antoinette Portis<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Everyone knows that dogs say \u201cwoof,\u201d cats say \u201cmeow,\u201d and birds say \u201cpeep.\u201d They certainly\u00a0don\u2019t<\/span> say \u201cfroodle\u201d ... or do they? Things get a little silly in the neighborhood when a little brown bird has trouble figuring out exactly what he\u2019s supposed to say. But soon even the crusty old crow is joining in on the fun!<\/p>\r\n <\/div>\r\n \r\n

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Guji Guji<\/cite><\/a><\/span>
by Chih-Yaun Chen<\/span><\/p>\r\n

When a young crocodile\u00a0finds himself (quite by accident) being raised with a family of ducks, you might expect things to go from bad to worse. After all, ducks and crocodiles\u00a0usually don\u2019t mix well. But when Guji Guji meets three hungry crocodiles, he has the chance to prove that he is not an ordinary croc.<\/p>\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n

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I Am Helen Keller<\/cite><\/span>
<\/a>by Brad Meltzer<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Many people didn\u2019t think Helen Keller would ever be \u201cnormal,\u201d but Helen was a very determined young lady. She certainly wasn't going to let the fact that she couldn\u2019t see or hear stop her, and with the help of a selfless and equally determined teacher, Helen accomplished more than anyone ever thought possible.<\/p>\r\n <\/div>\r\n \r\n

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Oliver<\/cite><\/span>
<\/a>by Birgitta Sif<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Written for \u201call those who have ever felt a bit different,\u201d Oliver<\/em>'s title character doesn't\u00a0mind being different. He loves his friends, and he loves the adventures they share in the wilds of his imagination. And just when Oliver begins to worry about his differences, he discovers the most wonderful adventure of all.<\/p>\r\n <\/div>\r\n \r\n

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Stand Straight, Ella Kate <\/cite><\/span>
<\/a>by Kate Klise<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Ella Kate didn\u2019t look like everyone else. She was a giant! By the time Ella Kate turned 13, she was more than six feet tall. And let\u2019s face it, being different isn\u2019t always easy. But Ella Kate discovers something wonderful--that being different can open doors to a world that a \u201cnormal\u201d person might never<\/span> get a chance to see!<\/p>\r\n <\/div>\r\n \r\n

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Stellaluna <\/cite><\/span>
<\/a>by Jannell Cannon<\/span><\/p>\r\n

After dropping from the sky and landing in a bird nest, a young bat begins to feel right at home with her new family. And though birds and bats have some things in common, they also have many differences--but that doesn't stop these accidental siblings from being friends. \u201cHow can we be so different and feel so much alike?<\/span>\u201d<\/p>\r\n <\/div>\r\n \r\n

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The Colors of Us <\/cite><\/span>
<\/a>by Karen Katz <\/span><\/p>\r\n

Brown is brown, right? Well Lena\u2019s mom doesn\u2019t think so, and she wants Lena to discover just how many shades of brown there are. Maybe a walk around the neighborhood will help! As Lena and her mom walk and talk, Lena sees lots of people. The Colors of Us<\/cite> reminds readers that though we\u2019re different, we\u2019re also alike.<\/p>\r\n <\/div>\r\n \r\n

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The Crocodile Who Didn't Like Water <\/cite><\/span>
<\/a>by Gemma Merino<\/span><\/p>\r\n

It's hard when you\u2019re a crocodile who doesn't like water--hard and lonely. And although the crocodile\u00a0in this story tries<\/em> to like the water, all\u00a0he really wants to do is climb trees. Everyone knows that crocodiles\u00a0aren\u2019t supposed to climb trees ... so maybe this crocodile isn\u2019t really a crocodile\u00a0at all!<\/p>\r\n <\/div>\r\n \r\n

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The Sandwich Swap <\/cite><\/span>
<\/a>by Queen Rania of Jordan Al Abdullah<\/span><\/p>\r\n

The sweet watercolor illustrations in The Sandwich Swap\u00a0<\/cite>provide the perfect setting for the story of two best friends, a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, a hummus and pita sandwich, a food fight, and the realization that sometimes you have to try something to know whether you like it or not.<\/p>\r\n <\/div>\r\n \r\n

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Thunder Boy Jr. <\/cite><\/span>
<\/a>by Sherman Alexie<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Like lots of boys, Thunder Boy Jr. is named after his dad, but this<\/span> boy isn\u2019t happy about it. He doesn\u2019t like his name, and he doesn\u2019t want to be called \"Little Thunder\u201d because it makes him seem small and unimportant. Thunder Boy Jr. wants a name that reflects who he<\/span><\/em> is. Maybe he'll just go out and get a new<\/span> name!<\/p>\r\n <\/div>\r\n \r\n

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Wild About Us! <\/cite><\/span>
<\/a>by Karen Beaumont<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Maybe it\u2019s time we all learned a lesson from the warthogs, rhinos, and flamingos. They\u2019ve all got something about them that isn\u2019t \u2026 well,\u00a0normal<\/span><\/em>. The warthog has warts, the rhino has wrinkly skin, and the flamingo has pink feathers. But that doesn\u2019t matter! \u201cThey\u2019re all a little different. And they like it that way!<\/span>\u201d<\/p>\r\n <\/div>\r\n \r\n

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You Are Special <\/cite><\/span>
<\/a>by Max Lucado<\/span><\/p>\r\n

In Wemmickville, the Wemmicks give shiny gold stars to all the handsome and talented wooden people. Punchinello isn\u2019t particularly talented and his paint is chipped, so he gets dots\u2026ugly, gray dots. But then Eli the woodcarver reminds Punchinello that he is special<\/span>--and that\u2019s when something amazing happens.<\/p>\r\n <\/div>\r\n \r\n

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You Be You <\/cite><\/span>
<\/a>by Linda Kranz<\/span><\/p>\r\n

As Adri swims\u00a0home after an exciting day of exploring, he notices something. He sees lots of fish in the sea, and they're all different<\/em>--big fish and tiny fish, colorful fish and plain fish, fish that swim up and fish that swim down. \u201cThere are so many of us!<\/span>\u201d Adri says. \u201cWe all have something special that only we can share!<\/span>\u201d<\/p>\r\n <\/div>\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n

FREE Picture Books that Celebrate Differences Library List<\/h2>\r\n
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Would you like to read some of my favorite picture books that celebrate differences?\r\n Click to download<\/a> my list to take to your local library.<\/p>\r\n\t

Looking for more<\/em>\u00a0books? You can find more great library lists here<\/a>!<\/p>\r\n<\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n

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Picture Books that Celebrate Differences Recommended by Our Readers<\/h2>\r\n