Welcome to The Dental Library Review! In this feature, we will be reviewing and highlighting different children’s books we have collected at our office. Our staff have personally used these books with their own children and have had great reception. Today, we will be going over Franklin and the Tooth Fairy by Paulette Bourgeois and Brenda Clark.

This book follows the characters and storyline of Franklin the Turtle and his animal buddies. In this tale, Franklin’s best friend, Bear, loses his first tooth. Startled by his friend’s joyous response, Franklin contemplates how and why he doesn’t have any teeth to lose. As he learns about the tooth fairy, he becomes apprehensive about not being able to “grow up” and get adult teeth. However, his parents clear up the confusion, and leave him a small present to celebrate him growing up, since he can’t get a visit from the tooth fairy.

We love this book because it deals with using lost teeth as a measure of “growing up.” Children typically lose their first tooth between ages 5 and 6, a range that can seem like an eternity to young minds. This book helps reassure children that although their friends may be losing teeth before them, they are all getting older every single day. Kinds tend to use lost teeth as a measure of age as it is a very visible milestone. This book is here to remind them that everyone grows up at their own pace, regardless of lost teeth.

Given the content and word count for this book, we would recommend it as a bedtime story or a guided reader for slightly older children. As with all the stories we review, feel free to check it out at your next appointment. We are always happy to do anything we can to get your family excited and educated about dental health topics!