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Short answer: for ages 3–5, start with The Little Book of Friendship, which turns "to make a friend, be a friend" into small moves a preschooler can try, or Devon Makes a Friend if your child hangs back and finds hello hard. Other lovely picks are Sharing Silver (a sharing and kindness story with a friendship thread), How Do Dinosaurs Play with Their Friends?, Strictly No Elephants and Chrysanthemum.
1. The Little Book of Friendship — by Zack Bush and Laurie Friedman
A warm, rhyming little book about the simplest truth of making friends: the best way to get a friend is to be one. It walks through small, doable ways to be kind and welcoming, which makes it a lovely one to read the week before preschool starts; each page is basically a move your child can try the next day. View The Little Book of Friendship on Amazon →
2. Devon Makes a Friend — by Jessica Davault
A gentle story that follows a child through the nerves and small brave steps of making a new friend. If your preschooler is the one who hangs back at the edge of the playground and finds saying hello hard, this is the book that says "that feeling is normal, and here's what one small step looks like." View Devon Makes a Friend on Amazon →
3. How Do Dinosaurs Play with Their Friends? — by Jane Yolen
The dinosaurs get it hilariously wrong first (grabbing, stomping, refusing to share) and then show how to do it right, with sharing, turns and gentle play. Preschoolers adore catching the dinosaurs misbehaving, and it lands a truth that matters for new friendships: playing kindly is what makes a new friend want to play with you again. Great for the youngest of this age group. View How Do Dinosaurs Play with Their Friends? on Amazon →
4. Sharing Silver — for the kindness underneath friendship
This is a sharing story first, so it helps with one part of making friends rather than all of it. In Sharing Silver, Silver the Super Pup shows a greedy little dog named Bandit that kindness, sharing and helping others come back around. Friendship gets a line of its own, "If you are friendly, you will have friends", and Silver later tells Bandit that "the kindest animals have the most friends."
What it doesn't do is show a new face becoming a friend. There is no first day, no hello, no asking to join in, so if that is where your preschooler is stuck, Devon Makes a Friend or The Little Book of Friendship will do more. Where this one earns its place is the habit underneath: after a few reads, "that was a Silver thing to do" is an easy way to notice your child sharing the crayons or offering a turn.
“The kindest animals have the most friends, and those who help the most have helpers everywhere.”
Sharing Silver — a superhero training story about sharing and giving, for ages 3–7. A kindness and sharing story with a friendship thread, rather than a making-friends story.
View Sharing Silver on AmazonYou can read a sample of Sharing Silver first, or if your little one is finding friendships hard, see our guide on what to do when your child has no friends.
5. Strictly No Elephants — by Lisa Mantchev
A boy and his tiny pet elephant are turned away from the local pet club, so they start their own, one where everyone is welcome. It is a beautiful story about inclusion and being the friend who lets others in, and its repeated line "that's what friends do" gives a preschooler words to carry into the classroom. View Strictly No Elephants on Amazon →
6. Chrysanthemum — by Kevin Henkes
Chrysanthemum the mouse loves her name — until she starts school and the other mice giggle at it. A tender modern classic about wobbly first days, teasing, and finding your people in a brand-new classroom. Best for the oldest preschoolers heading off to school, and a lovely conversation starter about kindness to the new kid. Once your child is settled in a classroom, the next stage of stories is on the kindergarten friendship list. View Chrysanthemum on Amazon →
Compare the books at a glance
| Book | Author | Best age | What it teaches | Where to buy |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Little Book of Friendship | Zack Bush & Laurie Friedman | Ages 2–5 | To make a friend, be a friend | Amazon → |
| Devon Makes a Friend | Jessica Davault | Ages 3–5 | Small brave steps to say hello | Amazon → |
| How Do Dinosaurs Play with Their Friends? | Jane Yolen | Ages 2–5 | Playing kindly makes friends come back | Amazon → |
| Sharing Silver | Neil Russell | Ages 3–7 (read together from 2) | Kindness and sharing come back to you (friendship is one line) | Amazon → |
| Strictly No Elephants | Lisa Mantchev | Ages 4–5+ | Include everyone — that's what friends do | Amazon → |
| Chrysanthemum | Kevin Henkes | Ages 4–5+ | Finding friends in a brand-new class | Amazon → |
How to choose, and how to use these books
If your child is starting preschool soon, begin reading a couple of these in the weeks before, so that smiling, sharing and asking to join in feel familiar before they're needed. Pick one clear idea per book and connect it to real life the moment you see it: "you shared your digger with that boy. That's a friendly thing to do." For a nervous starter, Devon Makes a Friend meets them where they are; for a confident chatterbox, Strictly No Elephants points that energy at including others. And keep the first real-life steps tiny: one hello, or one shared digger. Our guides on playdate ideas that build friendship skills and raising a kind, sharing friend pick up from there.