BOOK REVIEW: The Kissing Hand by Audrey Penn

In 2021, I'm participating in a children's literature reading challenge hosted by Mrs. Sarah Collier of Belle's Library and the Victorian Letter Writers Guild. 

Portions of this post also appear on my parenting blog: Mom2MomED

in a post called 7 Ways to Use The Kissing Hand by Audrey Penn.

Read the full post HERE.

My inaugural book for the Children's Literature Challenge is The Kissing Hand by Audrey Penn. My child (now an adult) and I first received this book as a gift from my mother several years ago when my kiddo was still quite young. 

On my parenting blog, I share 7 ways to use this book with your children (read the post HERE), but in this post, I am going to focus more on the book itself. I mean, look at these illustrations? The book is GORGEOUS!

My mom was a kindergarten teacher and bought many beautiful books for my child over the years, but The Kissing Hand is one that we returned to over and over. The story and premise are pretty simple but also familiar to pretty much every parent ever -- a child is scared and nervous about going to school for the first time and the parent tries to find a way to make it ok. In this case, mama racoon helps her child to overcome fear and anxiety by kissing the child's palm as a reminder that she's always there even if she's not physically present. 

The Kissing Hand was instrumental in helping my child and I adjust to the emotional turmoil that comes with going back and forth between divorced parents (read about my suggested books for divorce HERE). Although the book is the story of a child going to school for the first time, it easily is applied to any form of temporary separation between parent and child.

I loved reading through this book again and thinking about my mom -- she has dementia, but she still loves a kiss from one of her children or grandchildren -- and my child, now an adult. The story is lovely and the illustrations are beautiful. The animals, trees, and other aspects of nature are beautifully rendered throughout. 

Over the years, I've bought copies of The Kissing Hand for friends navigating divorce with young children and many have started their own kissing hand traditions to help their children navigate going back and forth between parents' homes.  

The Kissing Hand by Audrey Penn and illustrated by Ruth E. Harper and Nancy M. Leak, is such a lovely and sweet book. I hope you'll pick up a copy for a child in your life.  

Grab a copy on Bookshop HERE.

Grab a copy from Amazon HERE.

Or, hit up your local library.

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