MG Characters Who Cope with Anxiety

I come from a long line of anxious people. My dad is still sad about his parents leaving him at sleep-away camp for a whole summer when he was seven. I used to have meltdowns in Baskin Robbins as a kid — 31 flavors is too many to choose from! My kid deals with anxiety of their own. Anxiety can be hard for kids to understand, especially when it is happening inside their own head. Books are a great way to show kids that they aren’t the only ones who have worries and demonstrate different ways to get help. Here are some great choices that have characters who cope with anxiety in a number of ways.

Kiki Kallira Breaks a Kingdom by Sangu Mandanna (2021)

In this fantasy, an anxious kid finds escape through her drawings until those drawings come to life. She’s pulled into the world she created and discovers that she is the only one who can save it from a malicious being. In the real world, Kiki hides her anxiety from her mother, but in the world of the drawings she finds support that lets her start to better cope.

Hazel Bly and the Deep Blue Sea by Ashley Herring Blake (2021)

Blake’s novel is about healing from grief. Hazel’s mum died two years ago, and she still mourns and feels guilt over the kayaking accident that took her life. New friends, obsessed with mermaid folklore, help Hazel begin to see the water in a positive way again.

How to Make Friends with the Sea by Tanya Guerrero (2020)

Set in the Philippines, Guerrero’s novel is another that focus on fears around and the healing properties of water. Pablo hides his anxiety from his mother. When she takes in an orphan, Pablo is angry that Chiqui is getting all the care and attention he wants. I loved how Guerrero showed Pablo seeking out both peers and adults who could “handle” the truth about his anxiety and through them found ways toward a better path.

The List of Things That Will Not Change by Rebecca Stead (2020)

Stead’s novel about divorce and remarriage normalizes therapy in a way that I loved and appreciated. Bea is coping with her parents’ divorce okay. The list that she made helps because it reminds her of the constants in her life, like the fact that her parents will always love her. When her dad announces he is marrying Jesse, who has a daughter of his own, Bea is thrilled since she’s always wanted a sister.

Guts by Raina Telgemeier (2019)

In this autobiographical graphic novel, Telgemeier depicts how she developed a fear of throwing up and how she eventually learned to cope with her fear. I loved the depictions of her sessions with a therapist. As with all of Telgemeier’s books about her family, I enjoyed the scenes with her parents and siblings, working through tension with love.

Living with Viola by Rosena Fung (2019)

Another great graphic novel about anxiety. Fung draws Livy’s anxiety as its own character who berates and antagonizes her. Viola is hard for Livy to cope with until she begins making friends and learning to tune out the commentary her anxiety was providing.