Families First Recommended Readings

Families First has partnered with the Patient Library and Welcome Center to provide books, resources and materials in English and Spanish. There is a wide variety of books available for check out that can help caregivers build a foundation for having conversations about their cancer diagnosis with their children.

They include books for children ages 0-18 and their caregivers, which focus on emotions, cancer and end-of-life topics. The loan library features "Fritzy Finds a Hat", written by Olympic gold medalist Scott Hamilton, as an example of a book that helps ease the talk about a caregiver having a cancer diagnosis. 

Families First has a recommended reading list that was curated to focus on a wide range of topics, including cancer, emotional regulation, grief/end of life, and books for patients on supporting their children when a parent has a diagnosis of cancer. The book list includes recommendations for children and teens, and offers options available in Spanish print.  

Download Recommended Books (PDF)

Download Recommended Books in Spanish (PDF)

For information on free book resources:

Bright Spot Network’s Bright Reads Program provides free age-appropriate books for pre-school-age and early school-age children. These books are for children whose parents have cancer and range in topics from dealing with emotions, illness, grief and loss.

Living Beyond Breast Cancer Free Book Program provides free books and is for patients who have been diagnosed with breast cancer in the last six months and have children between ages 4-17.