Every Year on Your Birthday

We bought this for our dauther's 4th birthday and she LOVES it. I thought it could be too advanced compared to one of our other favorites, "Crazy Cakes." This is a different kind of story, but one well worth sharing. Our girls, 4 & 7, enjoy all of the connections to Chinese culture and traditions, as well as watching the baby grow into a young girl as they have. They easily see themselves and their "story" in the main character. Parents likewise will not be disappointed with this story. Lewis came up with another that pulls at the heartstrings, especially for the lucky parents of Chinese daughters.

I am an elementary school teacher and avid reader of Rose Lewis. Her new book, Every Year on Your Birthday, has brought so much joy to my students-who come from all types of families and backgrounds. That is what I love about Rose Lewis' and illustrator Jane Dyer's work. It strikes a chord with so many children and adults, no matter who they are or where they come from. My enthusiasm for her work is equaled throughout our school, by teachers and students. We were all so excited for our library to receive a copy of Every Year on Your Birthday, it is rarely on the shelves! I can not say enought about her new book. It is beautifully written, incredibly illustrated, and (from her fans)certainly appreciated!

I Love You Like Crazy Cakes came out just as I was completing the paperwork for my daughter's adoption, and Every Year on Your Birthday arrived just in time for my daughter's 4th birthday. When she opened her present, she held up the book and proclaimed, "It's ME!" I can't overemphasize how important seeing other Asian faces is to my daughter-- and our family goes out of its way to ensure that. The illustrations are beautiful, the sometimes difficult subject matter of orphanage life is treated sensitively, even positively. I highly recommend this book for Chinese adoptees-- and even other Asian adoptees-- although the content doesn't *quite* match all experiences, it is an excellent starting off point. For example, we talk about what we did on various birthdays, speculate as to how she celebrated her first birthday before she was adopted, how we celebrated her birthdays and GOTCHA days each year. What a wonderful, easy way to begin sometimes difficult conversations. An excellent addition to any pro-adoption library!

I bought this book for my daughter's 4th birthday. It really captures the experiences and feelings of those first few years following an adoption (from China). The pictures are beautiful and the prose is graceful and moving. Of course I will have to practice until I can read the last page without crying. I'm so glad that Rose Lewis wrote this book. Now I wonder... will there be more? The preteen years? When your daughter goes to college?