At bedtime one night four young children learn that their American mother lived in China when she was a little girl. After they beg her to tell them about that faraway place, she agrees to tell one story – the story of the neighbor children and their family. After three daughters the family begins hoping for a son, but their babies continue to be girls until finally, after six lovely daughters, they have a boy. The storyteller explains a lot about the customs and culture of the Chinese family in the process of telling the story. Although this book is small in size, the story is fairly long and better suited to middle elementary kids. The book is hard to locate since it has
been out of print for a long time.
A compilation of articles and poems written by and/or about TCKs, this book puts together some of the classic writings on the subject. Numerous articles offer insights on parenting in addition to giving a portrait of the TCK experience from various perspectives in this slim but valuable volume.
Except for a brief introduction to each chapter by the author, this book uses excerpts from interviews with thirteen adult TCKs to paint a picture of life as a TCK. It addresses some of the common strengths and struggles, as well as offering stories about what helped these TCKs overcome challenges they encountered, and what they would do differently if they raised their own children overseas. Some of the chapters are “Staying in Touch with Who I Was, When…” and “Serious Commitments, Marriage and Career,” and “Why Do I Feel so Migratory?”
Baby bat, Stellaluna, is separated from her mother and raised in a nest of baby birds. She adjusts to their ways but never quite fits until she meets fellow bats & finds she’s “normal.” Her adopted bird siblings can’t do what she can, but although they are both different and the same, they stay connected. Though not a TCK book, it could have applications for expat kids, growing up between two different ways of life.
Though not a TCK story, The Lotus Seed illustrates the preciousness of those special mementos we carry with us to remind us of where we used to live. It’s the story of a young Vietnamese girl who saves a lotus seed and carries it with her to remember her homeland after she flees to America, and her sorrow when she believes she has lost it forever. The story of a woman who adapts to a new way of life without forgetting her past, this book has gorgeous illustrations and a beautiful, poignant story that even teens and adults can appreciate.
Reading level: age 6 to 9 years, and applicable to older children and teens as well.
TCKs are often asked awkward questions about their lives far away from their parents’ culture. Some are broad and difficult to answer and others are just weird. These TCKs share some of what they have been asked and also how they want people to get to know them. This video would be great to show to a church group or anyone who is about to meet TCKs and wants to know how to be their friends. The interviewees were asked:
