Some families change by Jess Galatola and Jenni Barrand

Families do change, some become larger, while others become smaller, some have several children, some may have only one, some have an aunty come to stay while a parent is at work, sometimes a grandparent may die, sometimes other adults join the family.

A whole range of different families is touched upon, making this book almost a list of every sort of family a child may come across.

For children who may not have thought of the families they live in or that their friends are part of, this is a handy book to read and discuss. For those for whom change is occurring at the time, this book could be a good prop for them to realise that although families may change, the adults still love them.

There are families with two dads or two mums, families with lots of cousins, or aunts and uncles, grandparents and friends, families where one parent may not live with them, or there may be two houses, but whatever family the child is in, someone still tucks them into bed at night and cuddles and hugs them. Some parents may split up for reasons not known to the child, but it is important that the child does not feel responsible.

Even though the family changes, the important part of that family, the child is still loved.

Illustrations showcase the text as the book is read, showing the different make-ups of families. Families are multi-faceted, sometimes loud, some quiet, some only two people, others with a large number of people, some with two adults, some with one, sometimes the adults are the same sex, sometime some parent does not live there, sometimes their arrival home is a time of great excitement. But whatever size or shape the family is, the child at its heart is just that, a loved, valued and cared for member.

Themes: Families, Relationships, Love.

Fran Knight