I know the work of Philip Earle through his books for older children and he has managed to convey a sensitive understanding of this difficult issue. This book tackles the emotional challenges faced by children when their parents split up, both initially and as time goes on and other changes happen.

A sympathetic and highly relatable story about a girl and her brothers first getting used to living with both parents in separate homes and at separate times and then having to deal with a new family starting to merge in.

Florrie’s brothers seem to cope with all these changes without any reservations, but Florrie herself is worried essentially about her parents not loving her as much any more. She worries about becoming less important to them and of being left out of their affections, especially when competition arrives in the guise of first a girlfriend for her dad and then even more worrying, his girlfriend’s children.

An apt reminder for parents, extended family and even teachers to what children may be feeling and thus how to address these fears as well. If a marital breakup is looming or has happened, it is as a story that your child can relate to and that facilitates starting helpfulness conversations.

My review of Two Families to Call My Own which was released last week.

⏩ In short: loved it. Blended families and meeting parents' new partners are explored from the perspective of Florrie (previously seen in Two Places to Call Home). This short book covers so many elements of separation, blended families, new partners, step siblings etc in a brilliantly reassuring way.

❤️ I really like how the story acknowledges the very real fears and worries children face when parents introduce a new partner, and the partner's own children. The illustrations really captured Florrie's worries. The story then takes us on as Florrie mentions all the things that are wrong (or different!) about her dad's new partner. Ultimately Florrie discovers the benefits of two busy, blended households!

📖 I feel that parents would benefit from reading this book first and use some of the elements in their own blending of families: explaining that the original parents will always be friends, making sure they retain special 1:1 time with each child, remaining friends.

Divorce and separation is a subject extremely close to my heart. I wish reassuring books like this existed ~40 years ago when being a child of divorce meant you stuck out like a sore thumb. 😢💔

🧒 We'll definitely be adding this to our wellbeing book selection which we use in a targeted way to help children going through all kinds of things.

🖋️ @philearle
🎨 @jessrose_illustrator
🏢 @ladybirdbooks

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Florrie represents all those young children caught up in the experience of having separated parents who then meet other people.. sometimes with children of their own.

She has brothers, and two homes. She shows us the good side of parents living apart - two bedrooms! No sharing! More attention! And then she shows us what happens when Dad meets someone new (no it's not Mum)... which worries Florrie. SHe's just so different to her own mum. And then Florrie finds out this woman also has children.

The worries about being left out, pushed out, not being liked... many children will relate.

I liked seeing the contrast, as a co-parent to two boys who have a quiet life with me and a busier life at their dad's - similar to Florrie's new world. I liked seeing Florrie's thoughts, that my own 7-year-old seemed to relate to a little, and want to talk about.

This was reassuring, honest, and gave a rounded look at blended families and what everyone might worry about. I enjoyed the pictures too, with blanked-out bodies for those people Florrie hadn't met yet but already felt made an impression.

Great for schools and bedrooms of families going through similar experiences.

For ages 5-10.

With thanks to Netgalley for providing a sample reading copy.

Thank you so much to Penguin Random House U.K./ Ladybird and Netgalley for the ebook to read and review.

Florrie has two homes, one with her mum and one with her dad. She’s gotten used to having two separate houses, but then her dad changes things, he has a girlfriend and his girlfriend has children of her own.

This was wonderful it captured the situation perfectly, it also showed a positive outcome in a very difficult situation. It’s hard enough having your parents separate and divorce, splitting your life in half, but when new people are added to the mix it can be even harder to cope with it all.

I really enjoyed how Florrie was expressing her feelings of each new situation, things she was worried about, things she wasn’t wanting to have changed, and then finding out different facts and her mind shifted a little, accepting what was around her. It also had really big beautiful illustrations throughout the story, seeing what Florrie house’s were like and then seeing as the changes arose in her life. They were a great addition to the story and to look at on each page.

This is a great book for young readers, so many families are separated and so many are blended, which is such a huge change. A book like this can be the perfect thing to help a parent guide a child through a change like that, a perfect book for a child to read to understand they’ll be okay.

Two Families To Call My Own - Phil Earle & Jess Rose
☆☆☆☆
"And there's always just enough space for a Florric-only cuddle"
An empowering story for little ones going through big life changes. I love the emphasis on Florrie's feelings and how they are valid and the care Earle showed all his characters as they navigate a new way of living. I would definitely recommend to parents and educators who may have children experiencing similar life changes to help them process how they are feeling and to know they are valid in their thoughts and feelings.
@netgalley @ladybirdbooks @philearle @jessroseillustrates
#netgalley #twofamiliestocallmyown

Another beautiful & funny picture book from Phil Earle to help children navigate family seperation, divorce & new relationships. Would recommend this to School Welfare, Nurture Groups & ELSAs. I’ve already pre-ordered my copy.

This would be a great book to give to a child that is finding itself after their parents divorce or separation, as it covers the emotional side of them learning to cope initially with them having two houses and two routines, one with each parent, through to their parents getting new partners which create new families.

The story is well written, it is easy to follow and understand and has the most perfect illustrations for the story too - Florrie is a great character and I loved the way she was illustrated to capture both her mum and dad in her appearance. The story is great at covering blended families and is a must for school libraries too.

It is 5 stars from me for this one - very highly recommended!

I heard about this book months ago, and was excited to read it! This is a gorgeous exploration of blended families, the emotions they bring up and how blending families can be a glorious thing! Phil Earle can literally do everything. I adore the illustrations from Jess Rose too!

A young girl tells us her journey of challenges and how she came to appreciate her blended family.
When the tone, visual language and the content are in harmony, you get an excellent children’s book such as this one.
All the sensitive, beautiful and difficult and specific aspects of having changes in familial relationships and having more than one family have been explored with care and in a nuanced way, appropriate for children.
I absolutely loved the artwork too.