We Wanted You

by Liz Rosenberg

The loving voices of a child's parents tell the story of an adoption, from waiting to meet the baby for the first time through the growth of a family. Peter Catalanotto's vibrant illustrations form a clever and dramatic counterpoint to the presented as a series of family snapshots, the images run backward in time.

Genres: Adoption, Picture Books, Family, Childrens

32 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1999

About the author

Liz Rosenberg is an American poet, novelist, children's book author, and book reviewer. She is currently a professor of English at Binghamton University.

Reviews

[Esther · Rating 3 out of 5]

What I particularly enjoyed about this book and what makes it unique is you see the child that has been adopted as starting college at the beginning of the book and working backwards through the years until he is a baby and telling the adoption story along the way. The book is reassuring that the boy is a most wanted and loved member of the family still even now that he is an adult. (Very nice). The watercolor illustrations are beautiful. Also, the book does mention birth parents, but this is mostly about the adoptive parents' story like many other adoption stories and like many families in reality-that is the only story they have. I just always wish there was more discussion about birth parents in most stories...to me it seems like the big elephant in the room in many the adoption stories that is barely mentioned.

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Adults will instantly recognize this as an international adoption story, but the text is not actually specific about that. It's still very much the story of the adoptive parents, rather than the child, although the lovely illustrations feature the child even when the words are about the parents. What sets this one apart is a very nice treatment of what makes a parent: "We weren't your first father and mother. But we waited for you. We rocked you in the middle of the night and sang to you. When you cried, we came. When you laughed for the first time, we clapped our hands. We wrapped you up, tucked you in, and settled you down."

[Megan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Genre: Picture Book
Audience: K-2nd
Topic: Adoption
Theme: Family love and acceptance
Curricular Uses: Read Aloud, Independent Reading
Reading Level: Early Readers
Literary Elements: Repetition of the phrase "we wanted you"
Illustrations: Some pictures reinforce the text, while others are not so clear.
Additional Comments: This is a good book to teach children about adoption. It is a pretty easy read that children would be able to read on their own after having it read to them once before.

[Jenna Spinazzola · Rating 3 out of 5]

genre: picture book
audience: k- 2nd
topic: adoption
theme: family love, acceptance
curricular uses: read aloud, independent reading
reading level: early readers
literary elements: repetition of the phrase "we wanted you"
illustrations: some pictures reinforce the text while others are not so clear.
thoughts: I think this book portrayed a happy family with their new internationally adopted child and how the family showed acceptance as well as their family. I liked this book.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Parents reflect back on their boy's adoption story. They got little things ready while they waited. Two little odd things were making a quilt with pink, green, and blue and looking for him in between the clouds and the mountains. In the end, they wanted him, and they still do. Story is nice, but I don't love the pictures.

[Geri · Rating 4 out of 5]

Simple text; beautiful illustrations. Shows boy at multiple points in his life from infant to adult.

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

Adoption story.

[Nik · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked it because the mom and the dad wanted the boy.

[Darienbo · Rating 5 out of 5]

great book about adoption!

[Abby Turner · Rating 4 out of 5]

lovely ills and sweet message

[Andréa · Rating 3 out of 5]

The illustrations are a bit outdated looking now.

[Peacegal · Rating 3 out of 5]

As their child enters college, a mother and father reflect on his adoption, and how he came to be their child. This is a unique book on the subject of international adoption.

[Lily Ellis · Rating 4 out of 5]

The major themes of this book are acceptance, love, and family structure.

“We Wanted You” is about parents who adopted a boy from another country when he was very young. The book is a reflection from the parents’ point of view and how much love they have for their child, even before his arrival. Throughout the story the parents say things that remind their son of how much they love him even though they were his first parents. The story is in reverse chronological order and shows the boy and his adoptive parents at various important stages in life. The book shows the parents’ anticipation for a phone call telling them the good news, and then showing their preparation for the baby’s arrival. The latest event in the story is the boy’s graduation from high school.

This book was very heartwarming and made me very happy. This book reassures the boy that he is loved, will always be loved, and was and is always wanted. I really liked how the story was in reverse chronological order. I think the structure really enhanced the story and it was unique.

I would definitely recommend this book because it helps show the importance of love and acceptance, especially in a family. I also believe that this book has valuable lessons about adoption and differing family structures.

[Kelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

An adoption tale.