Picture Books
Brown, Dolores. The Day of Your Arrival. An adoption story told from the point of view of two parents about the love they have for their adopted child.
Bunting, Eve. Jin Woo. Davey is dubious about having a new adopted brother from Korea, but when he finds out that his parents still love him, he decides that having a baby brother will be fine.
Carlson, Nancy. My Family Is Forever. A young Asian girl’s first-person simple narration states how she came to her adoptive parents and describes the joys of having a loving family.
Clark, Karen Henry. Sweet Moon Baby: An Adoption Tale. The smiling moon watches over a baby girl in China whose parents love her but cannot take care of her, and guides a childless couple that lives far away to the daughter for whom they yearn.
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.
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.
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.
McDonnell, Christine. Goyangi Means Cat. An understanding cat helps a young Korean girl adjust to her new home in America.
Young, Ed. My Mei Mei. Antonia gets her wish when her parents return to China to bring home a Mei Mei, or younger sister, for her.
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.
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.
Little, Jean. Emma’s Yucky Brother. When Emma’s family adopts 4-year-old Max, they both need a little time to adjust before they become friends.
Little, Jean. Emma’s Strange Pet. Emma’s allergic to dogs, so she and her brother get a lizard. Her brother is glad they adopt the lizard, just like they adopted him.
Children’s Fiction
Frazier, Sundee Tucker. Cleo Edison Oliver, playground millionaire. Fifth-grader Cleo Edison Oliver is full of money-making ideas, and her fifth-grade Passion Project is no different. Things get more complicated when she has to keep her business running, be a good listener when her best friend needs her, and deal with the bully teasing her about being adopted at the same time. 213 pages. (J FIC Fra)
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)
Levy, Dana. The Misadventures of the Family Fletcher. Relates the adventures of a family with two fathers, four adopted boys, and a variety of pets as they make their way through a school year, Kindergarten through sixth grade, and deal with a grumpy new neighbor. 260 pages. Level V (J FIC Lev)
MacColl, Michaela. Rory’s Promise. Rory and Violet are orphaned sisters living in the Sisters of Charity Foundling Hospital in New York, but when the nuns decide to send Violet to an adoptive family out West, Rory is determined to follow her and keep their family together. 288 pages. (J FIC MacC)
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)
Partridge, Elizabeth. Dogtag summer. In the summer of 1980 before she starts junior high school in Santa Rosa, California, Tracy, who was adopted from Vietnam when she was six years old, finds an old ammo box with a dog tag and picture that bring up painful memories for both her Vietnam-veteran father and her. 229 pages. Level Y (J FIC Par)
Peacock, Carol Antoinette. Red Thread Sisters. After an American family adopts eleven-year-old Wen from a Chinese orphanage, she vows to find a family for her best friend, too. 236 pages. (J FIC Pea)
Rodowsky, Colby F. Ben and the Sudden Too-Big! Family. Until now, ten-year-old Ben has believed that life is made up of “all right” and “not all right” stuff, but when his father remarries and the couple adopts a Chinese baby, he wonders which kind of stuff will prevail. 120 pages. (J FIC Rod)
Non-Fiction
Books about adoption can be found in the J 362.734 section.
