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Missing Daddy
Missing Daddy is a picture book for young readers ages 4 to 8.
In this story, a little girl who misses her father because he's away in prison shares how his absence affects different parts of her life.
Her greatest excitement is the days when she gets to visit her beloved father.
With gorgeous illustrations, this book depicts a little girl's love for her father from whom she is separated because of incarceration.
Includes author's note and discussion guide.
In this story, a little girl who misses her father because he's away in prison shares how his absence affects different parts of her life.
Her greatest excitement is the days when she gets to visit her beloved father.
With gorgeous illustrations, this book depicts a little girl's love for her father from whom she is separated because of incarceration.
Includes author's note and discussion guide.
Paperback
First published September 17, 2019
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 52 reviews
April 1, 2022
A good book to read-aloud in the library with elementary school kids. It speaks well to let kids know it is not nice to make fun of someone with a parent in prison. The smiling girl nick-named 'light bright' by her daddy loves when she gets to visit him. Family is family!
Kids need to know we all have many levels of difficulties in our family lives outside of the school. Friends and family and counselors are all available to help, and talk to, or to simply sit and be quiet with them.
Light-Bright simply misses her Daddy. Lets not make anything harder for her.
Kids need to know we all have many levels of difficulties in our family lives outside of the school. Friends and family and counselors are all available to help, and talk to, or to simply sit and be quiet with them.
Light-Bright simply misses her Daddy. Lets not make anything harder for her.
December 22, 2020
A child, called "Light Bug" by their father for being so pretty and bright, misses their dad because he is in prison. This book shows all the community members—grandma, mom, school counselor, and teacher—who help them get through the hardest feelings of missing their dad, and culminates in visit day, when they get to see their wonderful dad. This is a great book, paying close attentions to the range of emotions the main character feels and how many people there are to support them. I also loved that when the main character asks why their dad is in prison, their grandma responds "the reasons are many." This felt both honest and accurate, and a refreshing change from other children's books about incarceration where adults respond to this question with answers focused on how the parent committed a crime. All the characters depicted are Black.
Themes: Incarceration, parents, family, community
Age range: Preschool and school age
Themes: Incarceration, parents, family, community
Age range: Preschool and school age
November 9, 2019
Very sweet and sad.
The flow of the book is at times inconsistent, switching between rhyming and not, but that does not feel like it should be an obstacle to the intended audience: children with incarcerated parents who need help processing.
Discussion questions and additional information in the back.
The flow of the book is at times inconsistent, switching between rhyming and not, but that does not feel like it should be an obstacle to the intended audience: children with incarcerated parents who need help processing.
Discussion questions and additional information in the back.
May 6, 2022
One little girl poetically recounts how much she visits her daddy, who has been incarcerated, and has limited opportunities to see him.
Told in couplet pages showing how much they miss each other, his pet name "light bug" for the joy she brings him, both child and parent's emotions, and facing a harsh reality that is made very clear in the authors' notes, this book shows just how much love can exist and how emotionally ripping it can be for a family.
Poetic and heartfelt, the stats and this little girl, will break you and make you question the social justice system, particularly in the case of unjust accusations, bullying and racism faced by marginalized demographics.
Told in couplet pages showing how much they miss each other, his pet name "light bug" for the joy she brings him, both child and parent's emotions, and facing a harsh reality that is made very clear in the authors' notes, this book shows just how much love can exist and how emotionally ripping it can be for a family.
Poetic and heartfelt, the stats and this little girl, will break you and make you question the social justice system, particularly in the case of unjust accusations, bullying and racism faced by marginalized demographics.
May 28, 2022
Missing Daddy is about a little girl who tells her story of what it's like to have a parent who is in prison. She knows it is not "normal" and is faced with discrimination from her classmates when they learn her Dad is a criminal. But through her Grandmother and teacher, she learns that families are made of different people, and that those that show love are the most important, regardless of their status. Reading this can allow children to ponder about how our justice system works but also why many injustices appear to impact only a specific demographic. Indeed, this story is explored with great sensitivity with warm color panels to bring in that softness to this story.
October 25, 2020
We do need more books featuring children with incarcerated parents. This is one I would add to my library collections; however, the prose is a bit clunky in that it loses its rhythm on many pages to make the rhymes work.
June 15, 2022
Good book for explaining to young kids about having a parent in prison.
November 11, 2019
I get the importance of this story. I have no problem there. What I have a BIG problem with is the stereotyping that seems to be happening.
Read
April 3, 2020Missing Daddy is one of those picture books where its simplicity belies its power. A little girl speaks about what it’s like having a parent in prison. Her grandmother helps out and her mom works hard. Good days are when she can visit her father and hug him. She has some support in the form of her teacher and adults she can share her thoughts and feelings with. But sometimes the kids at school tease her. She also has a half sibling that lives in DC that she wishes she could talk to more so they can talk about missing their dad. The text is rhymed and the final page shows the girl standing at the front of a classroom holding a piece of paper which I understood to mean the books is supposed to be a poem she’s written and is now sharing with her class.
There are a handful of picture books that deal with incarcerated parents (Visiting Day by Jacqueline Woodson, An Angel for Mariqua by Zetta Elliott, and Mama’s Nightingale by Edwidge Danticat all come to mind)*, but it’s not a commonly covered topic. And yet, there are 5 million children who have had a parent incarcerated at some point during their childhood. This is not a topic we can or should sweep under the rug. These children deserve to see themselves in the pages of picture books and need to see their feelings validated. If you don’t know Mariam Kaba, what are you doing with your life? Look her up. She does incredible prison abolition work and you need to have her work on your radar.
The illustrations are awesome. I love the color palate. I love the sketchy black outlines filled with blocks of color. It makes the book feel very modern and appealing. The line drawings of the people remind me of the posters and remembrances of people in the Black Lives Matter signs. It’s also incredible that the illustrator centers “black and brown imaginations of womxnhood, femininity and gender fluidity”. We need to be supporting artists like this and it’s not very common in traditional publishing.
For those of you using this in a classroom or with your children, there is a discussion guide in the back to help guide your conversations around the story. I know these conversations can seem hard, particularly if you are not used to having tough conversations about big topics like this and a discussion guide can help.
If you are a library or school with populations that experience incarceration this must be on your shelves. Honestly, you may not know if a family has someone incarcerated, so even if you think you don’t serve families with incarcerated folks, you might. But please also consider having this on your shelf if you don’t have kids with incarcerated parents. This is a topic everyone should be discussing with their kids- don’t let these families be invisible to yours just because you don’t have someone in prison. Knowing that some children have their families torn apart by the criminal (in)justice system and that it harms them will foster empathy in kids who are fortunate enough not to be experiencing it (and hopefully inspire them to fight the system).
You can purchase the book here on Amazon or directly from the publisher Haymarket Books. If you work with any organizations that do jail support where they offer coffee, snacks, and supplies to folks visiting jails and/or being released from jails, donate copies to have out for kids heading in to visit incarcerated family members.
*Interestingly, I realized all three of these books and Missing Daddy feature girls with incarcerated parents.
There are a handful of picture books that deal with incarcerated parents (Visiting Day by Jacqueline Woodson, An Angel for Mariqua by Zetta Elliott, and Mama’s Nightingale by Edwidge Danticat all come to mind)*, but it’s not a commonly covered topic. And yet, there are 5 million children who have had a parent incarcerated at some point during their childhood. This is not a topic we can or should sweep under the rug. These children deserve to see themselves in the pages of picture books and need to see their feelings validated. If you don’t know Mariam Kaba, what are you doing with your life? Look her up. She does incredible prison abolition work and you need to have her work on your radar.
The illustrations are awesome. I love the color palate. I love the sketchy black outlines filled with blocks of color. It makes the book feel very modern and appealing. The line drawings of the people remind me of the posters and remembrances of people in the Black Lives Matter signs. It’s also incredible that the illustrator centers “black and brown imaginations of womxnhood, femininity and gender fluidity”. We need to be supporting artists like this and it’s not very common in traditional publishing.
For those of you using this in a classroom or with your children, there is a discussion guide in the back to help guide your conversations around the story. I know these conversations can seem hard, particularly if you are not used to having tough conversations about big topics like this and a discussion guide can help.
If you are a library or school with populations that experience incarceration this must be on your shelves. Honestly, you may not know if a family has someone incarcerated, so even if you think you don’t serve families with incarcerated folks, you might. But please also consider having this on your shelf if you don’t have kids with incarcerated parents. This is a topic everyone should be discussing with their kids- don’t let these families be invisible to yours just because you don’t have someone in prison. Knowing that some children have their families torn apart by the criminal (in)justice system and that it harms them will foster empathy in kids who are fortunate enough not to be experiencing it (and hopefully inspire them to fight the system).
You can purchase the book here on Amazon or directly from the publisher Haymarket Books. If you work with any organizations that do jail support where they offer coffee, snacks, and supplies to folks visiting jails and/or being released from jails, donate copies to have out for kids heading in to visit incarcerated family members.
*Interestingly, I realized all three of these books and Missing Daddy feature girls with incarcerated parents.
May 21, 2021
I really appreciated this book from Mariame Kaba, who is an activist for prison abolition, and Bria Royal. There are thousands of children that need this story. I would like to read many more like it. If you are reading this comment and have recommendations, I would be glad to hear them.
Also, respect for having all Black characters.
Because GoodReads does not have a cover picture or description for this book, I'm including information from the Author's Note here:
"I wrote this book out of frustration. In my anti-prison work, I've witnessed firsthand the ravages of incarceration and its impact(s) on our communities. Over the years, I've often been asked by caregivers, educators, and organizers for resources to help children with an incarcerated loved one to cope with loss, grief, and trauma. I've struggled to come up with good resources to share so I've decided to create one myself.
There are 2.7 million children under 18 who have an incarcerated parent and over 5 million have experienced the incarceration of a parent at some point in their lives. In other words, 1 in 28 American children (3.6%) have an incarcerated parent. Thirty years ago, the number was 1 in 125. About 1 in 9 Black children and about 1 in 28 Latino children have an incarcerated parent. More than 14,000 children of incarcerated parents enter foster care each year.
These numbers are staggering. As a result of the epidemic of incarceration, millions of children have entered traumatic separations from their parents. This has impacted their material conditions, their mental health, their school performance, and their overall well-being.
Each of these children has a story to tell, yet we rarely hear their voices in public. Many children cannot articulate their feelings of longing for their incarcerated parent and so they keep their anger, sadness, and fear bottled up. This book is my attempt to amplify the voices of children with incarcerated loved ones."
Also, respect for having all Black characters.
Because GoodReads does not have a cover picture or description for this book, I'm including information from the Author's Note here:
"I wrote this book out of frustration. In my anti-prison work, I've witnessed firsthand the ravages of incarceration and its impact(s) on our communities. Over the years, I've often been asked by caregivers, educators, and organizers for resources to help children with an incarcerated loved one to cope with loss, grief, and trauma. I've struggled to come up with good resources to share so I've decided to create one myself.
There are 2.7 million children under 18 who have an incarcerated parent and over 5 million have experienced the incarceration of a parent at some point in their lives. In other words, 1 in 28 American children (3.6%) have an incarcerated parent. Thirty years ago, the number was 1 in 125. About 1 in 9 Black children and about 1 in 28 Latino children have an incarcerated parent. More than 14,000 children of incarcerated parents enter foster care each year.
These numbers are staggering. As a result of the epidemic of incarceration, millions of children have entered traumatic separations from their parents. This has impacted their material conditions, their mental health, their school performance, and their overall well-being.
Each of these children has a story to tell, yet we rarely hear their voices in public. Many children cannot articulate their feelings of longing for their incarcerated parent and so they keep their anger, sadness, and fear bottled up. This book is my attempt to amplify the voices of children with incarcerated loved ones."
February 5, 2025
This book tells the story of a girl whose dad is in prison, demonstrating how incarceration impacts not just the individual, but their entire family. Each page focuses on a different relative’s role in the girl’s life. It starts with her grandma, who takes care of her but doesn’t specify one singular reason to cause the father to be locked up. Then, the book shows her mom, who works long hours to support the family. The girl’s half-sister is also featured, sharing the same loss but living with her own mom unable to talk face-to-face. This book serves as an important tool to help children understand the emotional and physical effects of having a parent in prison. It emphasizes how incarceration can impact everyone in a family and shows the importance of empathy and kindness. It teaches that children who are going through these kinds of struggles that they can find support from teachers and counselors, but also teaches their peers to be supportive. It sends the message of kindness and understanding, as talking to one another and offering support can make a significant difference in helping students navigate their pain.
February 8, 2020
“I guess some kids forget that words can really hurt your feelings.”
The story of how a family, especially a child, is impacted by a father’s incarceration. From taunting at school to a mother who has to work extra hours, a little girl tries to deal with her feelings about the situation. “I try t be brave and hold back my heavy tears. I feel a blue wave of sadness. My daddy won’t be home for years.”
An author’s note in the back gives some staggering numbers about the number of kids who are impacted by a parent’s incarceration.
The story of how a family, especially a child, is impacted by a father’s incarceration. From taunting at school to a mother who has to work extra hours, a little girl tries to deal with her feelings about the situation. “I try t be brave and hold back my heavy tears. I feel a blue wave of sadness. My daddy won’t be home for years.”
An author’s note in the back gives some staggering numbers about the number of kids who are impacted by a parent’s incarceration.
November 20, 2019
The engaging illustrations and beautifully expressed emotion of the text far outweigh the slightly forced rhyme scheme. A wonderful resource for all parents and teachers--excellent discussion guide included. A mirror book for children of incarcerated parents from activist Mariame Kaba who has deep experience of the prison industrial complex and the trauma that it creates, particularly for families of color.
March 2, 2021
"There are 2.7 million children under 18 who have an incarcerated parent and over 5 million have experienced the incarceration of a parent at some point in their lives. In other words, 1 in 28 American children have an incarcerated parent. Thirty years ago, the number was 1 in 125." hoping to dig into more of Mariame Kaba's work soon. what a gift this book is to the kids who are most affected by family separation caused by policing.
February 1, 2022
Maybe read with Amber Was Brave, Essie Was Smart?
Hurts to read of the little one having such a long trip to go see Daddy. It's extra criminal to lock people up far away.
Both show how important family/neighbors/friends can be.
Hurts to read of the little one having such a long trip to go see Daddy. It's extra criminal to lock people up far away.
Both show how important family/neighbors/friends can be.
April 13, 2021
Sweet and moving children's book from the point of view of a little girl whose father is incarcerated. Told with empathy and in language perfect for younger readers by abolition activist and scholar Mariame Kaba, the book also includes discussion questions for conversations about prison, feelings, and justice.
Available as a free e-book on hoopla with your library card.
Available as a free e-book on hoopla with your library card.
February 19, 2023
This album by Mariame Kaba, beautifully illustrated by bria royal, through a cute little narrative dispositive, amplifies the voices of children with an incarcerated parent, children who are (collateral) victims of the prison-industrial complex. Missing Daddy is a heartwarming story that comes to us from one of the most important abolitionist thinkers in the USA.
September 30, 2019
For children with an incarcerated parent. Without sermonizing or romanticizing, the book illustrates one young girl's emotional web, from the low, hurting taunts from her classmates to the high thrill of the occasional hour with her father during visiting time.
November 7, 2019
The book had a great message that is, unfortunately, needed; a family member incarcerated. The simple text and illustrations were nice. However, it seemed that there was supposed to be a rhyme and rhythm to the book that was missed more than once. This ruined the flow of the story.
May 26, 2020
Through a simple rhyming narration, a young African American girl explores the emotions she feels about her father’s incarceration. A sensitive, straightforward story with warm illustrations rendered in loose ink outlines and splashes of light pastel and citrus tones.
August 5, 2021
I love how the text is separate from the illustrations - it makes it easy to read for little eyes. I like how it rhymes. I love how the pictures feel minimalist yet detailed all at the same time (maybe I just really like the linework in the art!).
April 5, 2022
"I try to be brave and hold back my heavy tears./I feel a blue wave of sadness. My daddy won't be home for years." An important picture book about the trauma and grief of having an incarcerated parent.
September 18, 2025
There is a lot to unpack in this little picture book; content is there to be gently unfolded as readers are ready. This book helps fill an immense gap in children's literature and I'd love to see more books giving voice to kids who have felt the impact of incarceration in their lives.
November 27, 2025
This book had me in tears. It does such a good job validating these scary and complex feelings. The storyline of this book is typically overlooked, so it was refreshing to see some representation. Another must-read!
January 1, 2019
Beautiful illustrations and a lyrical narrative bring us close to the heart of a young girl whose daddy is in prison.
Read
July 6, 2019I was given a copy of this book at the Schomburg Literary Festival 2019.
This story is a needed tool for starting the conversation about an incarcerated parent and the child they left behind.
This story is a needed tool for starting the conversation about an incarcerated parent and the child they left behind.
September 30, 2019
A simple and well told story. It is unfortunate that we need books like this for children.
October 3, 2019
A good resource for kids dealing with a parent who is incarcerated. Also a great discussion guide for parents/educators in the back.
October 11, 2019
Excellent picture book about a child missing an incarcerated parent. Includes helpful backmatter and a website that has additional resources. Highly recommended for ages 3-6.
October 17, 2019
One of those children's books where you are sad it has to exist, but are glad it does. We have a decent amount of families with an imprisoned parent or other family member who visit our library.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 52 reviews