Mommy, Was Your Tummy Big? [Hardcover]

Carolina Nadel (Author, Illustrator)

Book Description

A mother elephant explains her use of donor eggs to her child. With charming illustrations and simple words, "Mommy, was your tummy big?"can help parents who used in vitro fertilization and donor eggs begin to explain the process to their small children.
The book has been praised by many mental health professionals who work with fertility clinics, and an NYU Child Study Center article offers it as an example of how to tell a young child about his/her donor egg origins. It is on all major lists of books recommended for helping parents explain the use of donor eggs, including that of ASRM(American Society for Reproductive Medicine).
Paperback versions are available in Spanish and covering Donor Insemination on Lulu.com. For bulk orders at a discount and to view an older version of the entire book for free go to my website: CarolinaNadel.com.
Thanks!

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Carolina Nadel, the author and illustrator of "Mommy, Was Your Tummy Big?", has a background in medicine and lives in the Washington, DC area with her husband and 7 year old son. This is her first book.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Mookind Press; 2nd edition (August 3, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0979276101
• ISBN-13: 978-0979276101
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 8 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #167,753 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Resource!, September 12, 2007

By 

P. Martin, Lpc "LPC" (VA/DC/MD) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Mommy, Was Your Tummy Big? (Hardcover)

As a former DE patient/now mother, and a therapist specializing in infertility, I have been counseling clients thinking about donor egg, doing it, or having done it for nearly 10 years. Disclosure is one of the main issues parents grapple with. It can be daunting thinking of how & when to tell. Most critical is "how do I tell my child!?" Finally we have an answer! Carolina Nadel has given us an excellent tool. Her book will help all tounge tied DE parents begin a dialogue with their child. The pictures are positive and bright. They encourage interaction with your child. The text is simple, elegant and honest. It also encourages discussion and you can begin to add the specifics of your story to Ms. Nadel's story as you go. This book is not bogged down with too much information, nor is it dumbed down. You can read to a newborn, toddler and grade school child. It is a fantastic resource and I encourage all DE parents to get it and begin their own child's story with the help of Ms. Nadels's book. My 2 year old loves it! My older children read it to me and each other. They ask about the shots, the sad elephants and the BIG smile in the end! Carolina, THANK YOU!

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A rare find, September 3, 2007

By 

J (MA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mommy, Was Your Tummy Big? (Hardcover)

I've purchased several picture books that aim to introduce the concept of donor egg to young children, but this is the only book that I'm satisfied with. Unlike the others, this book strikes an excellent balance: it doesn't condescend and dumb down the process of egg donation, yet it also avoids technical terms that aren't age-appropriate and only serve to confuse young children. The dialogue between the mother and child elephants is realistic, and it's also simple enough to serve as a branching-off point for readers - other books don't allow for this opportunity. The illustrations are bright, cheerful, and age-appropriate without being cutesy. Finally, a picture book that presents egg donation in a non-threatening, straightforward, gentle, non-didactic, even fun way.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic book to explain family building, September 1, 2007

By 

The Stirrup Queen (Washington, D.C.) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mommy, Was Your Tummy Big? (Hardcover)

The book is great. It's very simple and the pictures are gorgeous. I think even more telling is the fact that my children immediately asked me to start over from the beginning at the end of the first reading and they laughed hysterically at the line "did you eat the egg." There are so few books out there that explain donor gametes in a way that is accessible to children so I am grateful to Nadel for writing this book. It also comes in a donor insemination version called Daddy, Was Mommy's Tummy Big? You can read the book online by going to Carolina Nadel's website and clicking "next" after each page (look to the right of the picture).