You Don't Have to Choose

When parents separate, something a child took for granted breaks: the idea that there is only one way to be a family. Suddenly there are two homes, two sets of rules, two routines, and a world that no longer works the way it used to.

Mia lived with Mom and Dad together, until the day they told her they were separating. Now she has two houses, and at first neither one feels fully hers. There is the bag she packs every time she switches homes. There is the special hello she and Mom made up, just for the two of them. There are nights at Dad's when she misses Mom, and nights at Mom's when she misses Dad. She feels fear, anger, and a guilt that was never hers to carry.

And she learns the one thing that did not move: her parents' love. She never has to choose between them. She is loved just as much in both homes, always.

Written by a licensed child psychologist, this story names the change without frightening children, makes room for everything they feel, and reminds the grown-up reading beside them that being close, in either home, is enough.

For children ages 4 to 8, for the hard nights and the ordinary ones.

The book ends with a note for grown-ups with the four things every child needs to hear during a separation: it was not their fault, they never have to choose, every feeling is allowed, and they are loved just as much in both homes. It also includes five questions to talk about together.