Review: a must-have book for young children about how babies are born -- written with love and sensitivity, too
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 02 28, 2014
Anat Umansky has written yet another fine book for young children, this time about how babies are born with beautiful illustrations by Eyvgeni Lagutin. The book tells small children how babies are born in a sensitive way that should satisfy their curiosity without ever becoming too simplistic or too detailed; and I like that a lot! The book also teaches children a number of correct words for the topic at hand and that’s another good thing. I should also note that with the Kindle purchase of this book there is a complimentary audio edition of this book with Michael Jarra as narrator.One day, two small kids who are siblings, Orly and Lior, are talking and their discussion turns to the topic of how babies are born. They think of possibilities: the stork bringing babies into the world; a baby growing out of a cabbage—or even a baby growing out of a flower! They also wonder how baby kittens are born and how baby fish are born, too; and the book discusses this and more in general, age-appropriate terms which is good because their parents are at work and their grandparents our on vacation!For example, children will learn that the mother fish spawns eggs and the father fish “(spreads) sperm cells from his body” that mix with the mother fish’s eggs so that “cute little minnows” are born. The book then proceeds to tell similar stories about how baby ducklings are born and how baby kittens are born. Young children are ultimately told (in an age-appropriate, somewhat general way) how human babies are born but still with words all throughout the book to enhance a young child’s vocabulary like “fertilizes;” “embryo;” “pregnancy” and “womb.”There’s a bit more to the story than this but I’ll stop here to avoid spoiling it all for you. Suffice it to say that it’s all very well written and quite informative for young children!I highly recommend this very educational book for children who are still rather young but just old enough to begin wondering just how babies are born. They will learn much from this book which will properly introduce them to the topic in a thoughtful, sensitive and loving way. Grownups will also be able to bond with young children as they read this book together and that’s grand.Great work, Anat Umansky and Eyvgeni Lagutin! This is a very good book indeed!