Adoption Stories for Young Children

Picture Books

De Paola, Tomie. A New Barker in the House. The Barker family adopts a 3-year-old boy who only speaks Spanish, so they all teach each other new words.

Galindo, Renata.  My New Mom & Me.  When the puppy comes to live with his new mom, he is nervous. After all, his mom has stripes and he doesn’t. But his mom says she likes that they look different, and soon the puppy likes it, too.

Ho, Joanna. Eyes that Weave the World’s Wonders.  A young girl who is a transracial adoptee learns to love her Asian eyes and finds familial connection and meaning through them, even though they look different from her parents’. Her family bond is deep and their connection is filled with love. She wonders about her birth mom and comes to appreciate both her birth culture and her adopted family’s culture, for even though they may seem very different, they are both a part of her, and that is what makes her beautiful. 

Jordan-Lake, Joy.  A Crazy-Much Love.  “How MUCH is the crazy-much love?” This simple question is answered as two parents recount the journey of adopting their daughter and the many milestone moments that follow. From the child’s first bath and first time riding a tricycle, all the way to her boarding that big yellow bus, the crazy-much love grows SO MUCH that it spills out the windows and busts down the doors.

Lang, Suzanne. Families, Families, Families! A host of animals portrays all kinds of non-traditional families.

Lin, Grace. The Red Thread: An Adoption Fairy Tale. A sad king and queen find joy and happiness after a mysterious red thread leads them to a baby waiting to be adopted.

Mallery, Sydra. A Most Unusual Day. Caroline is anxious all day at school, nervous about her newly-adopted sister’s arrival from far away.

Parent and Teacher

Caseley, Judith. Sisters. Tells about Melissa and her newly adopted sibling, Kika, who barely speak the same language but must now become sisters. The story alternates between the first-person viewpoints of each girl as they discover what it means to be a family.

Lambert, Megan Dowd. Real Sisters Pretend. Safe in the knowledge that adoption has made them “forever family,” stepsisters Mia and Tayja improvise an imaginary adventure with a joyful homecoming to a real home with their two moms.

Lawrence, Sue. Montana’s Memory Day. Montana is a thinker and a rememberer, and tomorrow is his Memory Day. He used to be a foster kid, but now he lives with New Mom, who adopted him. There’s a differentness about this mom–she’s like a steady stream that gurgles. But Montana is still adjusting to his place in this family, and life on a farm in the middle of winter

Lears, Laurie. Megan’s Birthday Tree. Megan worries that her birth mother will forget her when she moves to a new house and leaves behind Megan’s Birthday Tree.

Lopez, Silvia. Just Right Family : An Adoption Story. When Meili learns her parents are adopting another child, she must accept the role of big sister and realize a new addition can be just right too.

Serrano, Berta. Born From the Heart. Every child is born from the heart, even when that child is adopted. This poetic parable follows Rose and Charlie as they search for a child to make their own. As Rose’s dream becomes reality, her heart grows and grows . . . until it bursts with happiness, laughter, and wonder when she finally kisses the face of her beautiful new baby.

Thomas, Eliza. The Red Blanket. Tells the story of a mom bringing a red blanket when she meets her new daughter in China.

Williams, Vera B. Home at Last. After Lester is adopted from his foster home by Daddy Albert and Daddy Rich, he can’t fall asleep in his new bed. What will it take to make Lester feel home at last?

Illustrated Literature

Cummings, Mary. Three Names of Me. A girl adopted from China explains that her three names – one her birth mother whispered in her ear, one the babysitters at her orphanage called her, and one her American parents gave her – are each an important part of who she is. Includes scrapbooking ideas for other girls adopted from China.

Pettitt, Linda. Yafi’s Family: An Ethopian Boy’s Journey of Love, Loss, and Adoption. Yafi was born in Ethiopia and remembers living with his Grandma Elsa before moving to the orphanage where his new family found him. Yafi describes his early life and how he felt when first adopted. 

Say, Allen. Allison. When Allison realizes that she looks more like her favorite doll than like her parents, she comes to terms with this unwelcome discovery through the help of a stray cat.

Children’s Fiction

Kadohata, Cynthia. Half a World Away. Twelve-year-old Jaden, an emotionally damaged adopted boy fascinated by electricity, feels a connection to a small, weak toddler with special needs in Kazakhstan, where Jaden’s family is trying to adopt a “normal” baby. 225 pages. (J FIC Kad)

Kent, Rose. Kimchi and Calamari. Adopted from Korea by Italian parents, fourteen-year-old Joseph Calderaro begins to make important self-discoveries about race and family after his social studies teacher assigns an essay on cultural heritage and tracing the past. 220 pages. (J FIC Ken)

McKay, Hilary. Permanent Rose. While trying to reconnect with her friend Tom, who has returned to the United States without leaving a forwarding address, eight-year-old Rose inadvertently discovers the identity of her adopted sister Saffy’s father. 234 pages. (J FIC McK)

Non-Fiction

Books about adoption can be found in the J 362.734 section.