The Book Shelf: God Found Us You

Adoptive families (and families wanting to expose their children to adoption) are always on the hunt for good literature. Adoptive parents find out quickly that even with children's literature in adoption they need to be selective. Finding books that reflect their child's own experiences in an honest and open way is always challenging. I've asked a few of my adoptive families to review some of their favorites here.

You've met Shelly and her family here and on her blog. Today she shares one of their family favorites...

You know this is a good children's book when it makes YOU cry!

I've struggled with finding a good children's book about adoption. Some of them imply the child (or "lost animal") was abandoned at birth. But in our open adoption, that's far from the case. Our daughter was never tossed aside. Her birth momma never abandoned her or forgot about her. She chose life for her! And still loves her!

So as I've grappled with what kind of a message I want to send our daughter through children's books about adoption, I've been on a quest to find a book that doesn't totally conflict with our family's situation.

And I think I finally found one (YAY)!

God Found Us You by Lisa Tawn Bergregn, Illustrated by Laura J. Bryant

Age Recommendation: 2+

Theme:  Follows the conversation between a mama fox and her adopted baby. Little Fox curls up to his mother and says, "Mama, tell me again about the day I came home." Mama says this is her favorite story of all time because "when God found us you, it made me the happiest mother in the world."

Synopsis: This book is about Mama Fox and Little Fox and how they found each other in the big woods (er, how God found them each other!) Mama Fox and Little Fox have different fur which I appreciate because we are a trans-racial family, too. Little Fox asks Mama, as they're snuggled up in a field, to tell him about the night he came home. Mama Fox talks about how she prayed for him and prayed for him, not even knowing who he was or where he was. She talks about her unwavering faith, similar to ours, and her trust that God would find her Little Fox.

Is the book perfect? No. I'm not sure where Papa Fox is in the book. And I don't think any children's book is going to be perfect for an adoptive family because we're all so different!

But the illustrations are adorable, and in my opinion, the message of faith is unique and meaningful for our family. It's one I want my daughter to know and understand, so I'll be keeping this at the front of the bookshelf as she gets older -- and I'll also be purchasing it as a gift for families like mine who have been blessed with adoption.