Family Health & Sexuality: Book List
Literacy Connection
Nana Upstairs and Nana Downstairs
by Tomie dePaola
The author shares his childhood memories of his family growing up in an apartment building.
ISBN: 0698118367 Putnam Juvenile; Reissue edition 2000 Ages 4-8
All of A Kind Family
by Sydney Taylor
Five young sisters experience life in New York's Lower East Side at the beginning of the 20th century.
ISBN-10: 0385732953 Delacorte Books for Young Readers 2005 Ages 9-12
Who's In a Family?
by Robert Skutch and Laura Nienhaus
This children's book takes a look at the configuration of several different families.
ISBN-10: 188367266X Tricycle Press 1997 Ages 4-8
Growing Up (It's Science)
by Sally Hewitt
This easy to read text considers the ways humans change from birth through adulthood and compares human growth with that of animals.
ISBN-10: 0516264486 Children's Press (CT) 1999 Ages 4-8
What's Going On Down There? Answers to Questions Boys Find Hard to Ask
by Karen Graeville, Nick Castro, Chava Castro and Robert Leighton
The book balances information about being a sexual person with that of being a responsible person and is a useful, readable guide.
ISBN-10: 0802775403 Walker Books for Young Readers 1998 Grades 5-10
Romeo and Juliet
by William Shakespeare
This is the definitive book about teen relationships with each other and with their families. Even though this play is hundreds of years old, its lessons still hold true today.
ISBN-10: 0486275574 Dover Publications; Reprint edition 1993 - Thrift edition Grades 7-12
West Side Story
by Irving Shulman
This is the 20th century, big city version of Romeo and Juliet. Roles and relationships of teens and their families as well as friends are intertwined throughout the story.
ISBN-10: 0671725661 Pocket 1990 Grades 7-12
Fiction
Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret.
By Judy Blume
Judy Blume and her character Margaret Simon were the first to say out loud (and in a book even) that it is normal for girls to wonder when they are ever going to fill out their training bras. Puberty is a curious and annoying time. Girls' bodies begin to do freakish things--or, as in Margaret's case, they don't do freakish things nearly as fast as girls wish they would. Adolescents are often so relieved to discover that someone understands their body-angst that they miss one of the book's deeper explorations.
Grades 4-7 ISBN: 0385739869
Those are MY Private Parts
By Diane Hansen
It is a delightful and engaging contribution to helping parents educate children about the importance of learning to set boundaries.
Grades K-3 ISBN: 0976198800
I Said No! (A kid-to-kid guide to keeping your private parts private)
Helping kids set healthy boundaries for their private parts can be a daunting and awkward task for parents, counselors and educators. Written from a kid s point of view, I Said No! makes this task a lot easier. How to deal with inappropriate behavior, bribes and threats. When and where to go for help, and what to do if the people you returning to for help don t listen.
Grades 3-6 ISBN: 1878076493
Your Body Belongs to You!
This book is positive and assertive without being frightening. It lets young children know that it's all right for them to choose when, and by whom, they are to be touched. It goes on to define "private parts" as "the places on your body covered by a bathing suit," and states that they should never be touched by people other than medical personnel and adults helping with bathroom functions.
Grades K-3 ISBN: 0807594733
Just As Long As We're Together
By Judy Blume
Blume once again chronicles the customs, mores, and lifestyle of preteen girls. This first-person narrative touches on many themes found in her previous novels: friendship, emerging sexuality, body weight, the family, menstruation. The freshness and intimacy of 13-year-old Stephanie Hirsch's account infuse those themes with originality.
Grades 5-7 ISBN: 0385739885
It's Not the End of the World
By Judy Blume
Karen Newman has decided she'll never get married. Just look at her parents. All they do is fight. And now Karen's dad has moved out of the house and he and her mom are talking about divorce. Her older brother has locked himself away in his room, her little sister is a mess, and she can't bring herself to talk about any of it with her best friend. She's never felt so alone. Yet in spite of everything Karen is sure she can set things right again if only she can get her parents together in the same room. Or will her fantasy backfire?
Grades 4-7 ISBN: 0385739834
Amazing You!: Getting Smart About Your Private Parts
By Gail Salt
This title tackles basic body awareness and sex education. The text speaks directly to young children, differentiating between body parts that are visible most of the time and those that are kept hidden, showing the differences between girls and boys and offering a simple explanation of how babies are made without explicit reference to sex.
Grades Prek-2 ISBN: 0142410586
Basket Case (Serenity)
By Buzz Dixon
Serenity a mom? The thought's enough to make her crack. It's the last project she ever expected. Her health class requires each student to care for chicken eggs 24/7 to simulate the round-the-clock nurturing a real baby needs. Serenity thinks that's a tough assignment until she finds herself with much more than a baby chick to care for!
Grades 7-12 ISBN-10: 1595543856
The Boy Next Door (Candy Apple Series #2)
by Laura Dower
Taryn and Jeff have lived next door to each other their whole lives. It never really seemed to matter that they were a girl and a boy - they were just friends. But when they hit sixth grade, everything changes . . . whether they want it to or not.
Grades 4-7 ISBN: 0439929296
The Period Book, Updated Edition: Everything You Don't Want to Ask
The Period Book is a reassuring must-read for every girl about to have her period, and every parent wishing to prepare a daughter for this important milestone. With more than 300,000 copies sold, The Period Book stands out from the pack by specifically addressing younger girls. And with eleven now the average age at which girls get their period, this supportive and practical approach, providing clear and sensitive answers to common questions, is even more welcome today.
Grades 4-7 ISBN: 0802777368
Molly's Family
by Nancy Garden
When Molly draws a picture of her family for her kindergarten class, Tommy jeers at her that no one has two mommies. At first she is angry and hurt, but with the support of her teacher and her loving parents--Mommy (her birth mother) and Mama Lu (her adoptive mother)--she comes to accept her family.
Grades Prek-2 ISBN-10: 0374350027
Non-Fiction
Sex, Puberty, and All That Stuff: A Guide to Growing Up
By Jacqui Bailey
A wryly humorous approach to the topic, coupled with colorful cartoons, makes this a particularly friendly book. Bailey takes an honest, nonjudgmental tone in the clearly and cleverly written text, busting myths, dispelling confusion, and calming fears for readers whose "world has suddenly got a whole lot weirder," thanks to raging hormones. The coverage is comprehensive, including everything from body image to crushes to STDs.
Grades 4-9 ISBN: 0764129929
Please Tell!: A Child's Story About Sexual Abuse
Written and illustrated by a young girl who was sexually molested by a family member, this book reaches out to other children in a way that no adult can. Jessie's words carry the message, "It's o.k. to tell; help can come when you tell." This book is an excellent tool for therapists, counselors, child protection workers, teachers, and parents dealing with children affected by sexual abuse.
Grades 3-7 ISBN: 0894867768
Puberty Girl
By Shushann Moysessian
While the basic information presented here is sound, the book is marred by a reliance on an overly cute presentation that frequently slops over into silliness.
Grades 4-8 ISBN-10: 1741141044
BeTween: A Preteen Girl's Guide to Life
By Vicki Courtney
An insightful book for preteen girls that looks and reads like an irresistibly fun magazine, BeTween offers a wealth of wisdom to a booming and most impressionable audience. Through colorful articles, quizzes, games, and lists, girls age eight to twelve are encouraged to grow spiritually and socially in every major area of life. Still, most admirably, the book encourages girls to enjoy being their age rather than succumbing to modern culture's temptations to grow up too fast.
Grades 5-8 ISBN-10: 080544193X
Good Touch Bad Touch: Learning About Proper and Improper
To help educate children to be aware of the things perpertrators do when grooming a child to be a victim of abuse. Not to scare the child but to educate them to be aware and what to do if they are approached or touched improperly. This book isn't explicit in any way and leaves the door open for further discussion as the parents see fit.
Grades K-5 ISBN: 1448689546
Puberty Boy
By Geoff Price
Price seeks to arm boys approaching and experiencing puberty with information that will calm fears and answer questions. He includes detailed drawings and diagrams of male and female anatomy and addresses every topic from sweat to semen, body odor to body image, masturbation to man-boobs. The text is augmented with boys and mens real stories about puberty.
Grades 4-8 ISBN: 1741145635
Inexcusable
By Chris Lynch
A guy who's a devoted son and brother, a loyal friend, and a reliable teammate. And maybe most important of all, a guy who understands that when a girl says no, she means it. But that is not what Gigi Boudakian, childhood friend and Keir's lifelong love, says he is. What Gigi says he is seems impossible to Keir....It is something inexcusable - the worst thing he can imagine, the very opposite of everything he wants to be.
Grades 11 and up-Young Adult ISBN: 1416939725
My Body, My Self for Boys, Revised Third Edition (What's Happening to My Body?)
by Lynda Madaras
The Madaras growing-up guides are acknowledged by parents, educators, librarians, and doctors for their unique, nonthreatening style, excellent organization, and thorough coverage of both the physical and emotional issues surrounding puberty and adolescence. And kids love them too! As one fan wrote, "Dear Lynda, I can't believe that you, a mom, knew all this stuff!"
Grades 4-7 ISBN-10: 1557047677
PERIOD.
The authors emphasize the positive (e.g., "Being comfortable with your own body is important") and use diagrams to familiarize readers with the inner workings of their bodies, including what happens during menstruation. A question-and-answer format in the last three chapters allows girls to locate easily the information they seek. A parent's guide bound into the back suggests how to begin a conversation about puberty, what to cover, etc. A thoughtful approach for young women facing changes.
Grades 4-7 ISBN: 0916773965
The Guy Book: An Owner's Manual (Maintenance, Safety, and Operating Instructions for Teens)
By Mavis Jukes
With such chapter headings as "Under the Hood," "Yielding the Right of Way: Consent," and "Avoiding Hazardous Conditions: STDs," Mavis Jukes's Guy Book offers friendly, accurate, and up-to-date advice for prepubescent and adolescent boys. Covering a range of topics, from masturbation to decoding girls' signals to making that earth-shattering choice between boxers and briefs, this wise collection of information and how-tos will appeal to the testosterone-ridden boy who would sooner die than ask his mom or one of his buddies about spontaneous erections or confusing emotions.
Grades 5-10 ISBN: 0679890289
