Paper Chains

by Elaine Vickers

For the child grappling with the fear that growing up or going to different schools might change their most important friendships forever.

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About This Book

Reach for this book when your child is facing a major transition, such as starting middle school or feeling the distance of a growing friendship. It is a dual perspective story about Ana and Katie, two best friends who feel like they are drifting apart as they enter different worlds. The book gently explores themes of adoption, secret family history, and the anxiety of social change. It is ideal for ages 8 to 12. Parents will appreciate how it validates the intense emotions of pre-adolescence while providing a hopeful roadmap for maintaining deep connections through honesty and creativity.

Friendship & Loyalty New School Friendship & Social Loneliness & Belonging Adoption & Foster Care School Life Love & Family Growing Up

What Parents Should Know

Sad ThemesMild

Themes of feeling abandoned by a parent and the longing to know birth parents.

Sensitive Topics

The book handles adoption and birth-parent curiosity with a secular, realistic, and highly sensitive lens. It also touches on parental abandonment (Katie's father) and the anxiety of social hierarchy. The resolution is grounded and hopeful, focusing on communication rather than magical fixes.