A story that stays in the hard moment with them
Cory and Kyler's father is deployed. This book doesn't skip past that. It sits beside them — and shows the hands, seen and unseen, that hold them through it.
They may be apart — but they are never alone.
For every parent reading at bedtime, every teacher reaching for the right words, every child counting down the days — this book was made for that exact moment.
Words from families who needed this book
"My daughter's dad deployed last spring. I read this to her three nights in a row. She stopped asking me to make the missing go away — she just asked me to read it again."
"I keep this in my classroom library for the children who go quiet on Mondays. It opens conversations I didn't know how to start. Every school counselor should have a copy."
"The illustrations are extraordinary — each spread carries so much tenderness. Kalpart's work honors the children's experience without making it a spectacle."
— Military spouse, Virginia
— Elementary school counselor, Texas
— Children's librarian, North Carolina
Illustrated by Kalpart — whose tender, luminous artwork gives every page the dignity and warmth this story deserves.