Mimi, the Solo Magician Mom, and Cameron: A Donor Conception Story

Mimi, the Solo Magician Mom, and Cameron: A Donor Conception Story 

by Melissa A. Macdonald 

illus. by Jupiter's Muse 

Language: English 

Tellwell Talent, 2022. 

34 p. : col. ill. ; cm. 

ISBN: 0228860458 ; 9780228860457

Summary: Cameron is a confident, fun-loving kid who can't wait to tell you all about his magician mom, Mimi, and the things that make his family unique. For grown-ups: This heartwarming tale is told by a donor-conceived child named Cameron who shares his family's story with pride and honesty, even when offering a matter-of-fact explanation of conception. Being donor-conceived is just one way Cameron is one-of-a-kind. This is a wonderful resource for friends and classmates of donor-conceived people. It seeks to promote a greater understanding of family diversity and encourage thoughtful discussion. 

Available: https://www.amazon.com/dp/0228860458/

TA-DA! A Story of Egg Donation

TA-DA! A Story of Egg Donation 

by Ella Kay 

illus. by Farida Zaman 

Language: English 

Toronto : Second Story Press, 2022. 

24 p. : col. ill. ; cm. 

ISBN: 1772602477 ; 9781772602470

Summary: A curious little girl loves to ask questions. Most of all, she loves to hear how she was made with the help of an egg donor! A quirky, funny, and celebratory story that teaches kids about one of the many ways babies join a family. 

Available: https://www.amazon.com/TA-Story-Egg-Donation-Ella/dp/1772602477/

The Greatest Gift: A story of sperm donation

The Greatest Gift: A story of sperm donation 

by Isabelle Caron Hébert 

illus. by Sakshi Mangal 

Language: English 

Tellwell Talent, 2021. 

24 p. : col. ill. ; cm. 

ISBN: 0228869447 ; 9780228869443

Summary: The Greatest Gift recounts an endearing conversation between the author and her then three-year-old daughter. In simple, easy-to-understand words, the book tells the story of how babies are conceived and how a donor can help families conceive a child. It was written to educate young readers about family diversity, to spark conversations about family origins, and to help children understand the concept of a donor. This story, full of love and generosity, reminds us that the greatest gift of all is the love and time we share with our children and loved ones, regardless of how they were conceived. 

Available: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0228869447/

You Came From My Heart

You Came From My Heart 

by Brenlee Coates 

illus. by Roberta Landreth 

Language: English 

Canada: Friesen Press, 2021. 

36 p. : col. ill. ; cm. 

ISBN: 1039121543 ; 9781039121546

Summary: When people ask, you can tell them: you're from your momma's tummy, but you came from both our hearts. Where do babies come from? The answer is a little different for families with two moms. This book follows the story of a little one's life from where she started - her mommas' hearts. Through adventures, friendship and love, her parents learned a bigger way to think about family - and we think all readers will end up feeling the same. 

Available: https://www.amazon.com/You-Came-Heart-Brenlee-Coates/dp/1039121543

Wish, Miracle, Me!: A Modern Family Love Poem for Donor-Conceived Children

Wish, Miracle, Me!: A Modern Family Love Poem for Donor-Conceived Children 

by Lindsey Coad 

illus. by Kim MacPherson 

Language: English 

Tellwell Talent, 2021. 

38 p. : col. ill. ; cm. 

ISBN: 0228832209 ; 9780228832201

Summary: Follow Harvey as she takes us on her journey of being a donor-conceived person who started as a wish in her solo mama's heart. This artistic teen shares her happy milestones of childhood, including her modern family tree - complete with her donor and donor siblings. How does she thrive in her beautiful life while also holding a tender hope in her heart to one day meet the person who is so perfectly a part of her? Find out how Harvey embraces the story she was born into with a blend of self-love, curiosity, vulnerability, and courage that's as unique as her conception. Wish, Miracle, Me! invites you and your child into an affirming conversation about family, identity, belonging, and resiliency.

Available: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0228832209/

Auston the Magical Egg

 

Auston the Magical Egg 

by Stephanie Macri and Vince Macri 

illus. by Nicholas Mueller 

Language: English 

Friesen Press, 2021. 

col. ill. ; cm. 

ISBN: 1525594451 ; 9781525594458

Summary: When a little boy named Auston notices a bird's nest in his backyard, with a mommy bird and her three little eggs, he is very excited. He watches them for days until the eggs hatch and become little baby birds! It's truly amazing, but he has so many questions! He starts to wonder where he came from. He even wonders if he started out his life as a tiny egg, just like the adorable little birds. He has no idea that his mommy has an amazing story to tell him, about eggs, babies, and doctors who help Mommies and Daddies create them when they can't manage on their own. He learns that his parents needed that kind of help too, and that they needed to work really hard just to have him, after years of trying. Hearing her story, Auston learns how very special he is, and just how loved and wanted he has always been. 

Available: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1525594451/

Eve Gets A Sister: A story about egg donation, frozen embryo transfers and the journey to become a family

 

Eve Gets A Sister: A story about egg donation, frozen embryo transfers and the journey to become a family

written and illustrated by Heather L. Genik 

Language: English 

Independently published, 2021. 

25 p. : col. ill. ; cm. 

ISBN: 9798707279188 

Summary: As a follow up to "How Monkey Bears Are Made", this book addresses adding a sibling through frozen embryo transfer. Heather and Eve travel together to meet the doctors who made Eve. The book also addresses the ups and downs of becoming a big sister. 

Available: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08W7DMX9V/

How Monkey Bears Are Made: A story about egg donation and the journey to become a family

 

How Monkey Bears Are Made: A story about egg donation and the journey to become a family 

written and illustrated by Heather L. Genik 

Language: English 

Independently published, 2021. 

29 p. : col. ill. ; cm. 

ISBN: 9798706106997 

Summary: After many years of trying to have a baby, Heather Monkey and Murray Bear decide to accept a donation of eggs from Heather's friend Henny. This book tells the story of creating a family through egg donation. It is written in easy to understand language, directed at children of all ages. This book addresses creating embryos using donor eggs, without going into all the gory details, making it ideal for young children. This makes the perfect bedtime story, to tell your children how they came to be, as the story is written in such a way that kids can relate to it. 

Available: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08W7DMWYW/

For You

 

For You 

by Robbyn Danyluk 

illus. by Marina Hellervik 

Language: English 

Friesen Press, 2020. 

40 p. : col. ill. ; cm. 

ISBN: 1525581678 ; 9781525581670 

Summary: For You is a book about what it takes for some parents to finally have a child of their own. Infertility is an all-too-common hurdle that many people must overcome when wishing to grow their family, and reproductive assistance is often needed in order to make their dreams come true. There are not many children's books currently on the market that talk about fertility treatments. Thus, with compassion, honesty, and hope, Robbyn Danyluk-who underwent in vitro fertilization (IVF) in order to conceive-addresses the difficulties that surround infertility, speaking to both the children created through reproductive technology, as well as to the parents who have gone through or are going through-IVF and other fertilization processes. 

Available: https://www.amazon.com/You-Robbyn-Danyluk/dp/1525581678/

From Your First Heartbeat: A Love Story for My IVF Babies

From Your First Heartbeat: A Love Story for My IVF Babies 
written and illustrated by Tara Bushby 
Language: English 
Friesen Press, 2020. 
20 p. : col. ill. ; cm. 
ISBN: 1525565877 ; 9781525565878 
Summary: Sometimes babies come into a family in the old-fashioned way, but sometimes parents need to try extra hard to have a baby and have to go to a doctor for help. But mommies and daddies don't mind taking a few extra steps if it means their dream of having a baby can come true! Written in beautiful, heartfelt simple verse, From Your First Heartbeat is a love story for all children born through IVF to help them understand how much their parents wanted them and how special they truly are. This book is a must-read for all IVF families and a beautiful reassurance for their children that regardless of which path their parents took- with a doctor, donor, or surrogate-they are loved and cherished... 
Available: https://www.amazon.com/Your-First-Heartbeat-Story-Babies/dp/1525565877

Where do babies come from? : our first talk about birth

Where do babies come from? : our first talk about birth 
by Jillian Roberts 
illus. by Cindy Revell 
Language: English 
[Victoria, British Columbia] : Orca Book Publishers, 2015. ©2015. 
1 volume (unpaged) : color illustrations ; 23 cm. 
ISBN: 9781459809420 ; 1459809424 
Summary: An engaging introduction for very young children to the basic facts of life in a way that is gentle, age-appropriate and accessible. Child psychologist Dr. Jillian Roberts created the Just Enough series to help parents and caregivers approach difficult subjects with little ones. These primers offer a gentle and accessible starting point for conversations about important topics. Research shows that children are learning about sex at an increasingly young age and often from undesirable sources. The Q&A format, with questions posed in the child’s voice and answers starting simply and becoming gradually more in-depth, allows the adult to guide the conversation to a natural and satisfying conclusion. Additional questions at the back of the book allow for further discussion. 
Available: https://www.amazon.com/Where-Do-Babies-Come-Enough/dp/1459809424/

Le mystère des billes d'or : album

Le mystère des billes d'or : album 
by Jules Asselin
illus. by Ninon Pelletier 
Language: French 
Ottawa, Ontario : Les Éditions L'Interligne, [2016] ©2016. 
p. : col. ill. ; cm. 
ISBN: 2896994645; 9782896994649 
Summary: Sur une planète lointaine, vit une colonie de robots, tout comme les humains abondent sur la Terre. Un couple de robots qui s’aiment tendrement décide de fonder une famille. Afin de fabriquer des bébés robots, le robot mâle doit transférer des billes d’or de sa boîte dans celle du robot femelle. Hélas ! Lorsqu’il ouvre sa boîte, il s’aperçoit qu’elle est vide… point de billes d’or ! Le couple éploré accepte avec joie les billes d’un robot donneur par l’entremise du docteur Poupon. Et maintenant, pour leur grand bonheur, quatre petits robots roulent allègrement autour d’eux dans la maison. Racontée avec subtilité et adresse, cette petite histoire didactique sur l’infertilité s’adresse aux enfants de quatre à six ans. 
Available: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/2896994645/

A family is a family is a family

A family is a family is a family 
by Sara O'Leary 
illus. by Qin Leng 
Language: English 
Toronto ; Berkeley : Groundwood Books : House of Anansi Press, 2016. ©2016. 
1 volume (unpaged) : color illustrations ; 26 cm. 
ISBN: 9781554987948 ; 1554987946 
Summary: "When a teacher asks the children in her class to think about what makes their families special, the answers are all different in many ways -- but the same in the one way that matters most of all. One child is worried that her family is just too different to explain, but listens as her classmates talk about what makes their families special. One is raised by a grandmother, and another has two dads. One is full of stepsiblings, and another has a new baby"--Publisher.
Subject headings:

• Families -- Juvenile fiction
• Picture books

Available: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1554987946/

Milo's adventures: a story about love

Milo's adventures: a story about love 
by Frankie Nelson, BJ Barone, and Debbie Donsky 
illus. by Debbie Donsky 
Language: English 
CreateSpace, 2016. 
34 p. : col. illus. : cm. 
ISBN: 153284042X ; 9781532840425 
Summary: Told from Milo's perspective, Milo's Adventures is a story of surrogacy, love and becoming a family. The hoping, waiting, excitement, and love are universal experiences of a loving family but Milo's story is unique as he has two daddies, a surrogate and a whole world who celebrates his birth on World Pride Weekend. We hope that this story helps everyone understand that Family is About Love! 
Available: http://familyisaboutlove.com/

United by love : a happy adopted child

United by love : a happy adopted child 
written and illus. by Victoria Rikede 
Language: English 
Trafford, 2014. 
24 p. : col. ill. ; cm. 
ISBN: 9781490738949 
Summary: This is dedicated to all the families that have either adopted their children/child or have children through surrogate mothers. The book is meant to be a guideline to the parents when they are informing their children on how they were conceived. It’s also meant as an awakening in the societies to get rid of the prejudices on adoption and surrogacy. 
Available: http://bookstore.trafford.com/Products/SKU-000626507/United-by-Love.aspx

The not-so-only child

The not-so-only child 
by Heather Jopling 
illus. by Lauren Page Russell 
Language: English 
[Coburg, Ont.] : Nickname Press, [2006] 
[24] p. : ill. ; 19 cm.
ISBN: 0978073940 ; 9780978073947 
Summary: Larissa is an only child, but she is not alone! See how big this only child's family is! This book shows that an only child can still have a very full family with different lifestyles and ethnicities represented in her world. 
Library of Congress Subject Headings:

• Only child -- Juvenile fiction
• Gay parents -- Family relationships -- Juvenile fiction
• Kinship -- Juvenile fiction

Available: http://www.abebooks.com/book-search/isbn/9780978073947/

How you came to us

How you came to us 
by Theresa Cernak Bowder
illustrations by Patricia Cernak, LouAnn Nolan 
Language: English 
Victoria, B.C. : Trafford, ©2005. 
[20] p. : col. ill. ; 26 cm. 
ISBN: 1412051576; 9781412051576 
Summary: As the first answer to a very young child's question, "Where Did I Come From?", this book uses angels as the messenger who brings babies into the world by a very special process.
Available: http://bookstore.trafford.com/Products/SKU-000152460/How-You-Came-To-Us.aspx

I love you this much

I love you this much
by Katina Cahill
illustrated by Miss Robart's 1st Grade Class at Keswick Christian School
Language: English
Victoria, B.C. : Trafford, ©2004.
[24] p. : col. ill. ; 26 cm.
ISBN: 1412043883; 9781412043885
$13.50  
Summary: A mommy and a daddy desperately want a child to love. While "bursting" with love to give, they feel "empty" because they have no child to give it to. They try month after month, year after year, but no baby comes. Their hope gradually turns into sadness and despair, until one day when the mommy becomes ill. A rush to the doctor reveals that the mommy is pregnant and will soon have a baby to love "more than anything in the world." Joy and anticipation replace sadness and despair, and the arrival of their blessed son is the best thing in the world.  
Available: http://bookstore.trafford.com/Products/SKU-000162408/I-Love-You-This-Much.aspx

What makes a baby

What makes a baby
by Cory Silverberg
illustrated by Fiona Smyth 
Language: English 
New York : Seven Stories Press, ©2012, 2013. 
1 v. (unpaged) : col. ill. ; 24 cm. 
ISBN: 9781609804855; 1609804856
Annotation: The cover of this book states that this is “a book for every kind of family and every kind of kid” and it truly is. In the most general of ways, this book begins with the sperm and the egg but in a brilliant turn asserts what has not been asserted before in a children’s book, that some bodies have sperm, and some do not, and that some bodies have eggs, and others do not. This is so undeniable and obvious that one wonders why this hasn’t been stated in quite this same way before in a children’s book on human reproduction. While other books proclaim simply that sperm come from males and eggs come from females, this book admits that this is not always the case, again, without positively stating so. Think trans individuals for example. After introducing children to the terms sperm, egg, and uterus, Silverberg, a sexuality educator, asks, “Who helped bring together the sperm and the egg that made you?” Here the book clearly veers away from all other children’s books on reproduction by implying that not every sperm and egg come from a mommy and a daddy. In fact, the words mommy and daddy are completely absent from the book, conveying to children that not all families are made up of mommies and daddies. Although there are many other children’s books on assisted conception that state the same thing, this is one book that can be used for children conceived both with and without assisted technology. In fact it would be very useful in families where each sibling could possibly have been conceived in a different way. It provides absolutely no details about how the egg and sperm come together, whether through heterosexual intercourse or assisted conception, so the book clearly leaves the area wide open for parents to fill in these details, anticipating that the child will have lots of questions about how the sperm and egg get together in the first place in order to make babies. The rather sparse text is counterbalanced by the vibrant and vivid illustrations which convey a tremendous amount of information not specifically stated in the book, for the book’s aim is clearly to delineate the barest of facts about reproduction and leave the rest for the inevitable extended discussions and explanations that develop from a close reading between parent and child. For example, Silverberg writes, “Inside the egg are so many stories all about the body the egg came from.” Smyth’s illustrations then depict the inside of an egg with an open book, movie film, puppets, and a family tree. The egg is a very busy place! The same is done for the sperm with a look inside depicting family photos, a double helix, and another opened book. The book ends beautifully with the question, “Who was waiting for you to be born?” aptly letting children know that they are here because someone wanted them to be here. The brightly colored cartoon illustrations depict genderless bodies and no nudity. Recommended for children ages 3-5 and also 5-8. This is a book that children will want to go back to again and again with a parent as a reading partner to answer their evolving questions. This book comes with a highly recommended reader’s guide which can be downloaded from http://www.what-makes-a-baby.com/readers-guide/. 
Available: http://catalog.sevenstories.com/products/what-makes-a-baby
Interview with the author: http://whereisyourline.org/2011/08/badass-activist-friday-presents-cory-silverberg/ 

My parent(s) made me in a special way : with love and the help of donor insemination

306.874
HQ761 S54 1996
My parent(s) made me in a special way : with love and the help of donor insemination 
by Holly Jean Smith 
illustrated by Janet Boley
Language: English 
Ladysmith, B.C. : H.J. Smith, ©1996. 
8 p. : col. ill. ; 28 cm.
ISBN: 0968063306; 9780968063309
Available: http://mylats.com/book