Stories for Growing
Cover of My Friend Is SadAges 3 to 5
Empathy

My Friend Is Sad

Mo Willems

Ages 3 to 5
About this age guidance

Publisher: 3–5; Kirkus: 4–8

The age tag follows Disney-Hyperion: My Friend Is Sad. Other sources may suggest different ages. This is audience guidance, not an independent reading level.

Selected for a preschool kindness reading list.

Piggie’s costumes entertain Gerald, but what he misses is having her beside him.

Good forNoticing other people’s feelingsTrouble listening

Recommended by Happily Ever Elephants

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What children see in the story

Primary interpretation: empathy. Moments 1 and 3 connect noticing a feeling with hearing what the other person actually needs. The middle shows the limits of guessing.

Why it’s on these shelves

Empathy
Piggie notices Gerald is sad and shows up in cowboy, clown and robot costumes to cheer him up. Gerald doesn’t recognize her, and explains that what he wanted was Piggie there to share the funny sights.

Why pick it up?

The ending distinguishes entertainment from companionship.

A note for parents

The disguises are playful, not an attempt to gain possessions or evade responsibility. Sadness itself is not misbehavior. The final glasses joke is recorded alongside the companionship lesson, rather than replaced with a tidier moral.

Where this recommendation comes from

Happily Ever Elephants

Selected for a preschool kindness reading list.

Read Lauren Bercuson’s recommendation
Sources and review status

We have checked source descriptions and drafted the value mapping. We have not personally reviewed the full book. The value labels, situation assignments, and parent notes remain provisional.

Publisher or literacy resource · Original recommendation

Our explanation of the value fit is separate from the original reviewer’s judgment. Their inclusion here does not imply an endorsement of Stories for Growing.

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