Children's Book Suggestions | Disability Pride Month Picture Books

A diverse selection of picture books celebrating a variety of disabilities, including neurodivergence.

Looking for more children's books about the disability experience? Try our Disability Pride Month Chapter Books list for readers in Grades 2-7 and the American Library Association's Schneider Family Book Award winners & honor books.

Updated May 17, 2024
LINCC (Libraries in Clackamas County) Oregon City Public Library
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Can bears ski?
Antrobus, Raymond
Paper Book
Is Little Bear ignoring his friends when they say hi, or is something else going on? A discovery opens new doors in a tale that will delight kids with deafness and all children learning to navigate their world. Little Bear feels the world around him. He feels his bed...

A small bear who has trouble hearing the world around him until he visits an audiologist, who fits him with hearing aids. (Picture Book Age 3-7)

What happened to you?
Catchpole, James
Paper Book
A Schneider Family Book Award Honor book! This accessible, funny, and groundbreaking story addresses the questions children often ask, as well as a disabled child's choice not to answer. What happened to you? Was it a shark? A burglar?...

An award-winning story from English author James Catchpole, who uses gentle humor to navigate an all-too-common question asked of people with visible disabilities. (Picture Book Age 4-8)

My city speaks
Lebeuf, Darren
Paper Book
A young visually impaired girl and her father spend a day in the city, her city, travelling to the places they go together: the playground, the community garden, the market, an outdoor concert. As they do, the girl describes what she senses in delightfully precise, poetic detail. Her city, she says,...

A girl and her dad set out to spend a day in their city in this sensory exploration of sound, smell, taste, and touch. (Picture Book Age 3-7)

A day with no words
Hammond, Tiffany
Paper Book
An instant #1 New York Times bestselling picture book and Dolly Gray Award winner! A Day With No Words invites readers into the life of an Autism Family who communicates just as the child does, without spoken language. The American Library Association Booklist...

A day of ups and downs in the life of a nonverbal boy, showing all of the ways he communicates with friends, family, and his community. (Picture Book Age 4-8)

Rescue & Jessica : a life-changing friendship
Kensky, Jessica
Paper Book
A New York Times bestseller! A 2019 Schneider Family Book Award Winner Based on a real-life partnership, the heartening story of the love and teamwork between a girl and her service dog will illuminate and inspire. Rescue thought he'd grow up to be a...

Inspired by the true story of Jessica's dog Rescue, who trained to be a service dog and joined her family after Jessica and her husband were injured in the 2013 Boston Marathon bombings. (Picture Book Age 5-9)

Best day ever!
Singer, Marilyn
Paper Book
A sweet dog-loves-kid/kid-loves-dog story, in which the kid uses a wheelchair, from an award-winning children's poet and talented debut illustrator. This playful puppy thinks she's having the best day ever! She's so happy to be out with her friend, she doesn...

Despite some setbacks, a puppy and her boy enjoy a day of playing and exploring together. (Picture Book Age 4-7)

I talk like a river
Scott, Jordan
Paper Book
Winner of the Schneider Family Book Award Boston Globe-Horn Book Award Winner A New York Times Best Children's Book of the Year What if words got stuck in the back of your mouth whenever you tried to speak? What if they never came out the way you wanted them to?

A trip to the river with his father helps a young boy see his stutter in a new way after a bad speech day at school in this story based on a true event from the author's childhood. (Picture Book Age 4-8)

All the way to the top : how one girl's fight for Americans with disabilities changed everything
Pimentel, Annette Bay
Paper Book
2021 Schneider Family Book Award Young Children's Honor Book (American Library Association) Experience the true story of lifelong activist Jennifer Keelan-Chaffins and her participation in the Capitol Crawl in this inspiring autobiographical picture book. This beautifully illustrated story...

The Capitol Crawl was a little-known pivotal moment in the fight for the passage of the ADA--and elementary school student Jennifer Keelan was part of it! (Children's Nonfiction Age 4-9)

Henry and the something new
Bailey, Jenn
Paper Book
"Relatable characters, familiar scenarios, and gentle humor make this a remarkably satisfying read." --Horn Book Magazine, Starred Review  From the creators of the Schneider Award-winning books A Friend for Henry and...

This early reader series, based on Bailey's award-winning picture book A Friend for Henry, explores the joys and challenges of an elementary school classroom for a kid who appears to be on the autism spectrum. Gentle, empathetic, and never preachy. (Easy Readers Level 4)

Not so different : what you really want to ask about having a disability
Burcaw, Shane
Paper Book
Not So Different offers a humorous, relatable, and refreshingly honest glimpse into Shane Burcaw's life. Shane tackles many of the mundane and quirky questions that he's often asked about living with a disability, and shows readers that he's just as approachable, friendly, and funny as...

Author and YouTuber Shane Burcaw answers some of the common questions kids have about his disability with humor and warmth. This is a favorite with local elementary school teachers and their students as well! (Children's Nonfiction Age 6-9)


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