We’ve never needed a day like World Kindness Day more and it is actually today November 13, 2016. Seriously, it’s a real thing and feels ironically timely. In a world where children chant “build a wall” at a soccer game in Wisconsin, or reduce other kids to tears with the same type of rhetoric, or bully Muslim girls in school to take off their hijabs, or have to see racist graffiti scrawled in bathrooms. If this is Making America Great Again, I’m terrified.

That said, today is a day to be positive and to try to squash fear, anger, and hatred with kindness. In honor of that, I pledge to pay more attention to saying something kind to every person I talk to or seek out more ways to spread kindness and goodness, not just today, but every day going forward. I pledge to set a better example for our children than what is being set right now.

Also, I pledge to read more books about goodness and kindness overcoming obstacles and prejudice. And, I pledge to talk about those books with my daughter and other children and young adults to help spread kindness rather than hate. Books can change the world, if we just read them. Therefore, here is a World Kindness Day book YA list of books that I want to read to help fulfill my pledge. I’d love more suggestions for adding to the list!

WONDER by R. J. Palacio

wonderAugust Pullman was born with a facial difference that, up until now, has prevented him from going to a mainstream school. Starting 5th grade at Beecher Prep, he wants nothing more than to be treated as an ordinary kid—but his new classmates can’t get past Auggie’s extraordinary face. WONDER begins from Auggie’s point of view, but soon switches to include his classmates, his sister, her boyfriend, and others. These perspectives converge in a portrait of one community’s struggle with empathy, compassion, and acceptance.

My daughter read and loved this book. I have not yet, but it is now at the top of my must read list. This book is credited with inspiring a movement called Choose Kind Movement, an anti-bullying campaign.

How to Save a Life by Sara Zarr 

Jill MacSweeny just wishes everything could go back to normal. But ever since her dad how to save a life.jpgdied, she’s been isolating herself from her boyfriend, her best friends — everyone who wants to support her. When her mom decides to adopt a baby, it feels like she’s somehow trying to replace a lost family member with a new one.

Mandy Kalinowski understands what it’s like to grow up unwanted — to be raised by a mother who never intended to have a child. So when Mandy becomes pregnant, one thing she’s sure of is that she wants a better life for her baby. It’s harder to be sure of herself. Will she ever find someone to care for her, too?
As their worlds change around them, Jill and Mandy must learn to both let go and hold on, and that nothing is as easy — or as difficult — as it seems.

Fat Kid Rules the World by K. L. Going

fat-kidTroy Billings is seventeen, 296 pounds, friendless, utterly miserable, and about to step off a New York subway platform in front of an oncoming train. Until he meets Curt MacCrae, an emaciated, semi-homeless, high school dropout guitar genius, the stuff of which Lower East Side punk rock legends are made. Never mind that Troy’s dad thinks Curt’s a drug addict and Troy’s brother thinks Troy’s the biggest (literally) loser in Manhattan. Soon, Curt’s recruited Troy as his new drummer—even though Troy can’t play the drums. Together, Curt and Troy will change the world of punk, and Troy’s own life, forever.

Echo by Pam Munoz Ryan

echoLost and alone in a forbidden forest, Otto meets three mysterious sisters and suddenly finds himself entwined in a puzzling quest involving a prophecy, a promise, and a harmonica.

Decades later, Friedrich in Germany, Mike in Pennsylvania, and Ivy in California each, in turn, become interwoven when the very same harmonica lands in their lives. All the children face daunting challenges: rescuing a father, protecting a brother, holding a family together. And ultimately, pulled by the invisible thread of destiny, their suspenseful solo stories converge in an orchestral crescendo.

Also for younger readers, here are other options