Change happens all the time. Sometimes change is good; no one wants a completely static life. But this year of 2020 has taken the meaning of change to new heights. While people around the globe are scrambling to adjust and readjust, children are every bit as much a part of that crazy dance.

The books reviewed today help put change into a sharper focus. Such books help kids understand that they are not the only ones experiencing the difficulties that change can require. Ask your local librarian and favorite bookseller for additional suggestions and help kids adapt by reading about others who have done the same.

Books to borrow

The following book is available at many public libraries.

“The Arrival” by Shaun Tan, Arthur A. Levine, 130 pages

Read yourself: age 7 – adult.

An extraordinary wordless picture book, “The Arrival” tells the tale of a man who must journey from his war-torn town to a distant land to find work and save enough money to send for his wife and child. The place he goes is foreign and mystical, and those he meets along the way share similar stories of hardship and sacrifice to find this strange and safe place to live.

Although wordless, this picture book demands careful attention to each successive illustration that “tells” the story and thereby igniting the imagination. An excellent choice for anyone, this offering is equally suited to reluctant or struggling readers, regardless of age.

A feast for the eye and the mind, “The Arrival” is an exceptional offering.

Librarian’s choice

Library: Northwest Branch Library, 901 Schuylkill Ave., Reading

Executive library director: Bronwen Gamble

Choices this week: “Green Eggs and Ham” by Dr. Seuss; “Swimmy” by Leo Lionni; “Egg” by Kevin Henkes

Books to buy

The following books are available at favorite bookstores.

“The House by the Lake: The True Story of a House, Its History, and the Four Families Who Made It Home” by Thomas Harding, illustrated by Brita Teckentrup, Candlewick Studio, 2020, 44 pages, $17.99 hardcover

Read aloud: age 7 – 10.

Read yourself: age 7 – 10.

Nearly a hundred years ago, a little wooden house was built beside a lake by a kind doctor and his cheerful wife. They wanted a home for their four children away from the city of Berlin. Life there was wonderful and happy for several years until a group of angry men forced the doctor and his family to leave.

A year later, a new family happened upon the house in their travels. They made a good life for themselves until war came and the family ran away in search of safety. While airplanes flew overhead, another couple from Berlin arrived at the house hoping to avoid the fighting in the city. The house kept them safe for a while, but when tanks rolled too close by and bullets struck the house, they made their way back to Berlin and left the house vacant.

Then one day, a man and his children came down the sandy lane and made the house by the lake their home. He repaired the house, and life there was a delight until soldiers built a giant wall through the backyard. The wall blocked the way to the lake, and made everything gray and dull, until 25 years later when the wall was broken down.

When that man grew old and died, the house was vacant for 15 years and fell into disrepair. When a young man approached the house, he saw that it needed help, and with his neighbors by his side, they made the house like new again. On the mantle above the fireplace he placed a photograph of his great-grandparents — the kind doctor and his cheerful wife — and life for the house by the lake began again.

Based on the author’s great-grandparents and the subsequent families that lived in the same dwelling over many decades, “The House by the Lake” is a sensitive, moving portrayal of people adapting to change and is ultimately a story of hope and perseverance.

“Evelyn Del Rey is Moving Away” by Meg Medina, illustrated by Sonia Sanchez, Candlewick, 2020, 32 pages, $17.99 hardcover

Read aloud: age 5 – 8.

Read yourself: age 7 – 8.

Daniela’s best friend is Evelyn Del Rey. The two girls live across the street from each other and have played together for a long, long time, imagining great adventures, games of hide-and-seek and much more, and consider themselves to be mostly the same, just like the layout of their apartments.

But not all things stay the same — such as today — because Evelyn Del Rey is moving away. While the girls spend their last day together playing as the moving men take everything out of Evelyn’s apartment, they eventually say their goodbyes knowing they will always be each other’s first best friend.

Evocative illustrations pair perfectly with this lovely story of friendship and adjusting to changes in life.

Nationally syndicated, Kendal Rautzhan writes and lectures on children’s literature. She can be reached at kendal@sunlink.net and kendal.rautzhan27@gmail.com