The true story behind it
This one is from our own life. It was 2021, during COVID, and our son was only six or seven months old. My wife and I both tested positive, and we had to quarantine apart from him for about a week while he stayed with his grandparents. When we were finally able to see him again, it was overwhelming. He couldn’t talk yet, but he clapped his hands and smiled and smiled when he saw us. I wrote Stripes from that, a tiger who’s hurt and can’t get home to the family waiting for him, until Kitty and Dino heal his wound and help him back.
What happens in the story
Stripes the tiger is injured and can’t make it home, and it weighs on him to think of his family waiting and afraid. Kitty and Dino find him, heal his wound, and help him home. A gentle, tender story about separation and the quiet joy of a reunion.
Looking for a children’s book about tigers?
Tiger books are usually about being fierce. Stripes is the opposite. He is injured and cannot make it home, and the thing weighing on him is his family waiting and afraid. Kitty and Dino find him, heal his wound, and walk him back.
It came from 2021. My wife and I both tested positive for COVID and had to quarantine away from our son, who was six or seven months old, for about a week. He could not talk yet. When we finally came to get him he clapped and would not stop smiling. That reunion is what this book is really about.
Look inside
Flip through the opening pages of the book.
Perfect for
- ✓ Families who have been apart, for any reason
- ✓ Talking gently about missing someone
- ✓ A comforting, reassuring bedtime read
- ✓ A tender gift with a lot of heart
Quick answers
A tender story about the joy of coming home
One short story. One family reunited. Ready for tonight.
Choosing a gift? See our Book Gifts guide for ages 3–8 →
