Tell Me Again About the Night I Was Born

This is a very cute picture book. For young children, it tells about adoption in a way they can understand as well as being a birth story. Adults will enjoy the little jokes in the text that children are unlikely to get as well as some funny details in the pictures (spot the septuplet set, for example).

This book was about a little kid asking their mommy and daddy to tell them the story of when they were born. The book goes through the process of adoption. The little kid loves hearing this story over and over. The child is well aware of being adopted, how there was a lady that was giving them up. This story really spoke to me on a personal level, because I'm adopted. I think that this is such a great book to read to kids who are adopted to see that there are plenty of children who get adopted even if their story is different.

This is a charming book about a girl who is asking her parents to retell her about the night she was born. We end up hearing the story through her words and you find out that the little girl is adopted. This book has a very sweet message about what a family is and about loving your family. A great read for any age.

This is one of the few Jayme Lee Curtis books that does not rhyme. But that makes it no less special. This book starts with a child asking their parent to tell them about the night they were born. And this book goes through the child being born and picked up and how special it was because the child is adopted. This helps normalize adoption. It’s not a scary thing, it’s what it is, and it’s its own special view of how you came into the world. There are fabulous illustrations, and this is a forever classic by Jayme Lee Curtis.

Summary:
A little girl wants her parents to remind her about the night she was born. She takes us through the events in which her parents went through to go get her, since she was adopted. She recalls the memories like it just happened. The book has some photos vertical instead of horizontal like the rest.

Personal Reaction:
This book reminded me of all the times I wanted my parents to tell me when I was born and how perfect I was even though I had like three other siblings. I liked the fact that this is not a typical newborn book since the little girl was adopted. The pictures were well colored and had good value in each. But there was one thing I didn’t like and that was the fact that the readers would assume the parents were telling show more the story but the child was.

Classroom Extension Ideas:
1. Have the kids draw what they can remember about being a baby
2. Have the kids come up with their own set of events they think their parents went through when they were born. show less

This books is a wonderful primer for families with adopted children. It is also helps develop a wonderful bond between biological and adopted siblings. With this book, my youngest daughter gets to understand what her parents went through to get her older sister. And, this book allows my oldest to ask questions about her adoption story. We laugh together at the illustrations and it lets me share some of the funny things that happened to my husband and I when we brought our oldest home. Oddly enough, it also helps my youngest understand where she came from. (A very interesting conversation about belly buttons took place today.)

Summary: The little girl in the book asked her parents to tell her again about the night she was born. The girl asked her parents to tell her again about the different parts of the day and following milestones in her life as a baby. The girl is adopted by her parents and tells of their travels to meet her after she was born as well as the first few days after arriving home with her parents.

Evaluation/Argument: The author did a wonderful job telling this story! I loved the way that the author used the main character to repeat the phrase "Tell me again" in order to inform readers about different things that happened when she was a baby. This book was written very different than most books that I am use to reading. For example, the author show more doesn't explicitly tell the readers any events that happened, rather allows the girl to recount her remembrance of these events. By doing this the readers are not just told what happened, but rather how different people reacted and what they did. The author also did a nice job of bringing up the topic of adoption in a subtle way. She did not just tell readers that the character was adopted, but explained why she was adopted. Birth parents were also briefly mentioned, which gave readers a small hint into this aspect of adoption. The illustrations were done in a way to make it seem like the main character drew some of the pictures. The girl's family tree looks to have been drawn by a young child. I really think that the way the author chose to write this book and her style gives it a unique feel.
The central message of this book is that even if you parents are not your birth parents, you are still loved just as much. The family that you have should be special because you were given as a gift to this family when you are adopted. show less