CCBC booklist are compiled from books we have recommended in various editions of CCBC Choices. Most of these booklists are updated annually. You can also select books from one or more booklists to create a custom list, which can also include additional books from the CCBC-Recommended Book Search.
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Anything
CCBC Review:
A thoughtful father eases a tough transition for his young daughter. On the day the narrator and her dad move into their new apartment, Daddy makes a cake with one candle (for the apartment’s birthday) and tells his daughter to make a wish—for anything. Three anythings, in fact. “I can wish for very hard things. But Daddy didn’t look scared.” As they go about their day unpacking and visiting the nearby playground, the girl wishes for many things in her heart: that the slide were not so tall, that the apartment didn’t smell like paint, and that they hadn’t had to move at all. To Daddy, she wishes for a rainbow in her room (he paints one), pizza for dinner (granted), and to skip her bath (done). Waking up homesick in the middle of the night, she asks Daddy for one more wish: to go home. “Daddy opened his arms. ‘All aboard the train to home!’” Around the apartment they walk, talking occasionally; Daddy’s repeated reassurances that the trip is a long one, and that he’ll be carrying her “for a long time still” are comforting. The trip ends with the narrator tucked safely into bed, and in the morning, Daddy has a new favorite breakfast ready for her. Scribbly black line drawings show Daddy and the narrator with paper-white skin; bright, rainbow colors fill in objects here and there. Touching without being too sweet, this gentle story depicts a dad who knows his daughter—and what she needs—well. Honor Book, 2026 Charlotte Zolotow Award ©2026 Cooperative Children’s Book Center
Illustrated by Gracey Zhang
CCBC Age Recommendation: 4-8
Age Range:
PreK-Early Elementary (Ages 4-7)
Grades 3-5 (Ages 8-10)
Format:
Picture book
Subjects:
Change
Fathers
Moving
On CCBC Booklist:
Charlotte Zolotow Award (for Outstanding Writing in Picture Books)
Publisher:
Chronicle
Publish Year: 2025
Pages: 48
ISBN: 9781797215150
CCBC Location: Picture Book, Stead
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Please send questions or comments about CCBC booklists to ccbcinfo@education.wisc.edu.