When I was a little girl, I spent hours mesmerized by the gorgeous photos of everyday life around the world in The Family of Man. This National Geographic photographic essay has the same feel. Beautiful full bleed images of people around the world playing together are paired with Kerley’s spare text, one sentence per spread. This is a book that you’ll want to look at over and over and over and…

The back matter has a world map, thumbnails of each photo, along with a title and the location where it was shot. There are quotes from famous people about friendship, a short essay about friendship by the author, and hints for caregivers about how to help kids make friends, but you’ll quickly find yourself turning back to look at those photographs just one more time.

With a Friend by Your Side, by Barbara Kerley. National Geographic: 2015