My Mom's Having a Baby!: A Kid's Month-by-Month Guide t… (2024)

If you could see me right now, you would see a completely exasperated person. And here's why:

There is no reason that this book should be challenged. It's a little bit stupid, sure. It's a weird combination of simple and specific. (What kid who reads basic picture books needs to know the words " Fallopian tubes?") And yes, get ready to clutch your pearls because there are some very non-detailed and cartoony illustrations of naked people. I'll wait for you to wake up from fainting...

So, yeah. Screw you, book banners, for making me read books like this. Because every book that gets challenged makes it directly onto my reading list. It doesn't even pass go. And I so rarely have fun with them. So learn your lesson! Keep your mouth shut and I promise you - far fewer people will end up reading it. Dumbasses.

Really? A banned book? Not that big of a deal people. The proper names are penis, vagin*, testicl*s, and sperm. I would rather have my children know the proper names than call it all by some ridiculous term. Nudity? Far from it. This isn't some soft p*rn. I thought it was tastefully done with correct information, the way children should be taught.

** This summer, my best friend and I are tackling the American Library Association’s list of the 100 Most Banned/Contested Books in the United States! This is book 6/41 for me. Add me as a friend to follow my reading journey.**

Hey! Kids should know where babies come from. That’s all.

Huh.

I picked this up because it was on the top ten most frequently challenged books list of 2011(when will you people learn? The only reason I read this is because you tried to ban it. If you don’t want anyone else to read it, never speak of it again!)

The book is told from the point of view of Elizabeth, whose mom is having a baby. Let’s look at the reasons for the attempted banning: nudity, sex education, sexually explicit, and unsuited to age group.

Nudity: check. Well, I was surprised too, when we went from a description of the “twenty teeny, tiny buds inside his mouth that will become his teeth” and turned the page to find dad and mom in their birthday suits. No, I was more than surprised, I was offended! How dare you just throw that nudity in my face! Surprises in stories are great, but you still have to put a little effort into the suspense building, the lead up, the foreshadowing. You can’t just go from teeth to a description of fallopian tubes. RESPECT THE READER.

Sex education: in a book called “My Mom’s Having a Baby???” Come on! At least warn a person! Talk about out of left field…

Sexually explicit: You know what? I am big on calling things by their names. That’s why my son, bless his heart, will bend your ear about his penis every chance he gets rather than tell you about his “pee pee” or his “willy” or some other such silliness. But I’ll agree that it was a bit much for me to read about the cervix, the fallopian tubes, the testicl*s, etc. By the time you need to have that kind of vocabulary, this book is too old for you. In my opinion. That doesn’t mean I want to take it away from you though, because you have the right to read whatever you want.

Unsuited to age group: Shoot. I kind of just said that above, didn’t I? Well fine, I kind of agree. But I must repeat, you have the right to read whatever you want, and I have the right to not read it if I don’t like it.

If you’re interested in reading more banned books yourself, find out more here: http://www.ala.org/advocacy/banned/ba...

This book was on the news last week for being too graphic for children. So, I thought I'd check it out. Maybe I'm not horrified because now all my kids are old enough to know about all this, but I thought it was tastefully done and informative. There are a few pages with 'diagrams' of body parts and such, but they are not overly graphic which is perfect for kids. I will agree that this book is probably not appropriate for children under 5-6 years, but entirely appropriate as a tool for teaching kids who are old enough to learn about these things. I gave all my kids 'the talk' at 8 or 9 years old on the advice of a really great book called 'How to Talk to Your Child About Sex' by Linda and Richard Eyre. This book is exactly in line with what they suggest as a good way to introduce the subject. Yes, this book is on the shelf where kids can reach it, but it is in keeping with other books around it on the shelf. I've seen what else is out there, and this is definitely one of the better ones. Parents should be monitoring the books their kids get regardless. Yes, this is a tricky subject to talk about with kids, but I for one am glad this author was willing to tackle the subject and do it so well.

Straight forward. No-nonsense. No religious miracles. This book pulls no punches and is very detailed. Children can definitely hear fallopian tube, cervix, uterus, etc. Those words aren't too big. Don't be parents that hold your children back.

I'm amused that people are upset that "sex education" is included. First off, that isn't sex education. That's how babies are made. Sex education includes talks about STD, sexuality, sexual health, pregnancy prevention, and self-confidence and respect. Secondly, you shouldn't teach pregnancy without explaining how they're made. Why would you? What kid is gonna let you off without answering that question?

"My Mom's Having a Baby!" is book for children to understand each month what happens to a mother and the baby during pregnancy. This book was challenged in 2011 because of its description of sex education and nudity. This book describes in great detail each step during pregnancy and reproductive organs. In order to describe sex and reproduction, descriptions of sex and reproductive organs are necessary. The book does a great job of describing each stage and relates to many other families who have a baby on the way. The book even won the Top Ten Sci-Tech Books for Youth in 2005. Children start asking about pregnancy at an early age and it is always a hard topic to discuss. Nevertheless, I think that this book would be better for a parent to describe "where babies come from" instead of using it in the classroom. Sexual education is taught around 5th and 6th grade and this book is steered more to younger children who are having a baby sister or brother on the way. There are a few pages that describe pregnancy like how food travels from the mom to the baby that would be very educational and appropriate for students. In the end, I believe this book to be educational for families, however, only a few pages that are appropriate for classroom use.

My Mom's Having a Baby! by Dori Hillestad Butler and illustrated by Carol Thompson, is a children's month-to-month guide to pregnancy. The child in the book, Elizabeth, is about to become a big sister. She describes her mother's journey and describes how the baby changes from month-to-month. The issue people have with this book is that it also explains how the baby got inside of her mommy by using anatomically correct illustrations of a man and a woman.

Although Butler's book was written to help parents and children talk openly and honestly about where babies come from, it has been challenged due to nudity, sex education, being sexually explicit, and unsuited to age group. In 2011, the book was listed as the 4th most challenged book in the United States.

I think the book was banned for exposing human genital material. I think this book is suitable for older children, such as fourth grade and above and junior high school. For younger children, the book is banned properly. Students can learn how mothers get pregnant, how babies grow up and finally give birth. This is very important for children's sex education. If use this book in class, I think teachers should read it with students and explain it properly, to make it more sense to children.

As most reviewers wrote, I picked this up because it was a banned book and I wanted to see what all the noise was about. Overall, I think this story is well-written and uses all of the appropriate terms for body parts. I like how it goes month by month to show the development and growth of Elizabeth's brother or sister. The book contains many well-drawn and detailed illustrations that will help a child understand how a baby grows.

However, I don't think this book is age-appropriate. I felt like the illustrations of a man and woman's body parts with accurate labels was fine because some children are curious about how boys are different than girls. I also appreciated the use of appropriate terms for the body parts instead of slang. The page with the man on top of the woman in bed and the very accurate description of how the sperm gets into the woman's body was a bit much for me though. While it was 100% entirely accurate and not too graphic, I don't feel like it is something that a child reading a picture book is ready to learn about yet. Children do need to learn about sex education, but it needs to come in small doses and in age-appropriate language.

I was actually shocked at the amount of detail this book goes through. I do not agree with most banned books in school's; however, I do agree that this one is way over the top. According to the reading level and illustrations you would think this book would be for elementary school age kids. I thought it was okay at first. It goes through the different stages of pregnancy in a very elementary science way which is fine but then goes into the details of where sperm and eggs come from and even how they get together... The book also illustrates this. This is way too much information for any kid in elementary school and I do agree that this book should not be allowed in elementary school libraries!

I do not agree with this being banned. (I don't really agree with ANY book being banned, though.)

I happily read this to my 3.5 year olds and almost 2 year old. They're pretty desperate for a sibling and are pretty interested in how that happens. I don't think much of this was news to them, we've discussed it all in detail before.

The only issue in this house is the twins always get confused about someone having "only one baby?!" and while I have explained vagin*l birth to them in depth they know they were born by c-section so they are still a little confused that not everyone else is. Also we don't tend to stick with the "it takes a man and a woman who love each other to make a baby" line, so I had to stop and add our usual spiel about how that's overly simplistic.

I think this is one of those times where kids are being underestimated. If this doesn't fit your families values I don't care, don't read it. (But don't try to prevent other families from reading it...)
My kids certainly weren't overwhelmed, upset, or confused by it. They thought it was neat.

This was a very cute informative book. The story takes place over the length of the mothers pregnancy and each step is explained in such a way that even if this is a first encounter with the facts of life, they will understand.

I put a hold on a couple of books at our library for #BannedBookWeek2017 , but they didn't all come in, in time for me to read them during the week. I am still going to count them towards #BannedBookWeek though, because they deserve the credit!

This is a great book to keep in your classroom! Although it may not be beneficial to the whole class, young children often experience a new brother or sister coming into the world. Having this book in your classroom may help the child transition and understand the changes going on at home. The author does a great job in throughly explaining all the month-by-month changes throughout pregnancy as well as changes the child may be going through.

It's a little advanced for my 3-year-old. I do like it, but i did skip the page about sex. As I read i tried to make the rest of it age-appropriately digestible for her. Would recommend it for an older child.

July 2018 - a good overview with child-friendly information.

Ugh. Just no.

Very detailed explanation of how Mom got pregnant😳

This book is very informational on the process of a baby. It might be a little too much information for early learners.

Butler, D. H. (2005). My Mom’s Having A Baby! Morton Grove, Ill.: Albert Whitman & Co.

Starred review School Library Journal 2005

Concept Book

This is a sweet book about a little girl named Elizabeth, who just learned she is going to be a big sister. In all of her excitement, she asks many questions of her mother about the process. This book takes the reader along the nine-month journey as her mother accurately answers questions about reproduction and the developing baby. The illustrations are colorful and very informative including both descriptive labels and humorous cartoons panels. My Mom’s Having A Baby is an excellent choice for helping children as young as preschool understand the concept of human reproduction.

Well, I don't usually pay attention to drama so I knew nothing about the hoopla this book caused. My daughter grabbed it at the library so we started reading it. Because she is 4, I wasn't ready for the information this book has in it. I'm glad the book is out there, but I wish I had known what I was getting into. My daughter immediately caught that I was editing what I was reading. LOL. Anyway, I really liked the parts about getting ready for the baby. The sections about how babies are made was done well and should be available. Just know what you are getting.

This book is on the banned book as of 2012, after reading this story and just paging through the book I understand why. There is nudity, sex education through out, sexually explicit pictures, and unsuited to age group pictures portray. At first glance of the cover I would think this is a story to tell a sibling about what to expect while mom is pregnant and help prepare a child for the upcoming new arrival of a baby. As I turned to the second page I saw a magnified picture of a fetus in a mother stomach, no child needs to see this

I have a four year old that I wouldnt let look at the photos or even read this to her. The photos were not for her age group and the words were not right either. I wouldnt read this to my four year old and I think it's better for when you talk about sex to your child when they are older. This book was in the children area. Where my daughter could find it so easy. I even heard of a mom going on the news about this book and was upset about the book being in the children area.

I guess this book is frequently challenged/banned.
Make sure you read this yourself first, to decide if you and your child are ready for it, and if you want to skip some parts! Sex education in a straightforward way for young children. I definitely skipped parts for my almost-4 year old. But he was fascinated with the parts I did read. He likes learning about how he developed, how he grew as a baby inside his mama.

I thought this was tastefully done and I didn't find the graphics too detailed or offensive. I think this book was well done and makes pregnancy and everything leading up to it understandable and accessible to kids. If you don't think you're kids are ready for it or you don't want them to see the pictures, there are other books to be used. The existence of this book gives parents options, which I'm sure everyone appreciates.

This is conversational in tone, telling the story of a little girl who's mom is having a baby. It goes month by month about the baby's development. It's a different focus from It's Not the Stork - this follows a baby, and so introduces sex that way. The book by Harris really starts with what are our bodies like, and so focuses on the child more.

I saw this on a top banned books list and almost hoped I would find something to justify it. Nope. It just explains to children where babies come from. It has some diagrams, but nothing that children haven't seen already. Anybody that is surprised by this didn't really pay attention to the title. I don't have a problem with any children reading this book with their parents.

This book had a very graphic and honest description of pregnancy. I think it would be useful for a family trying to explain this information, but would not be appropriate for school. I think some of the concepts could be understood by elementary school but middle school students would understand the information the best. It is a banned book.

This is a wonderful non-fiction account of what it is like to have a baby, written in accessible language to children. I liked how everything was discussed using the real words and not glossed over. If a young child is welcoming a new baby brother or sister, this would be a great way to explain the process!

girls loved the book...goes month to month of mom's pregnancy from perspective of the older sister. had to skip a couple of pages due to pretty graphic illustrations that preschoolers may not be ready to digest. non-fiction book, not picture book.