And Then Came You: When Families Grow, Love Grows Too

PreS-Gr 3–A warm and tender explanation to children of how a heart expands when a family grows. An only child in a family of two adjusts to the fun of his mother’s “new friend” and subsequently adjusts to the introduction of a pet dog, but balks at the arrival of a newborn sibling. Shawn’s simple, lyrical rhymes are brought to dazzling, lush life by an evocative use of chalk pastels and watercolor to render a forested treehouse setting. With its important social-emotional learning topic and a common experience, this book features a multiracial family whose parents have Asian and African identities. Unfortunately, the narration may come across more as an advertisement for the future joys of having a sibling than an emotionally resonant gift to young children who are meeting such a sibling for the first time. While the art soars, the narration fails to connect.