A Catholic Mother's Thoughts review

A Catholic Mother's Thoughts
December 3, 2010

Red in the Flower Bed: An Illustrated Story about Interracial Adoption
by Rosemary Bogdan

Tribute Books has asked me to write a review of the children's book Red in the Flower Bed: An Illustrated Story about Interracial Adoption by Andrea Nepa. And so I give you the following:

In 2001 Andrea Nepa adopted a little girl, Leah, from Vietnam. It is to this daughter Leah that Andrea has dedicated her book. "For my dear Leah, whose journey in her young life has already taken her to far away and unexpected places."

Red in the Flower Bed is a sweet book. The story is a simple one of a seed in a faraway place which is dropped by a flower onto dry ground. The flower, realizing the ground is too dry, allows the wind to transport it to a garden that is especially right for it. The seed germinates and grows into a beautiful red poppy, delighting all the other flowers with its new and different color. The daisy exclaims, "There is now red in the flower bed. And best of all, look down the row...We have a complete rainbow."

A lovely metaphor for the international and interracial adoption process, the story is told in simple rhyme that could be easily understood by even a young child.

The endearing illustrations and lovely message of hope and Providence make this a suitable book for children of all ages.

I almost wish the subtitle had not been added. It is, of course, important to the author as it is indeed a symbolization of the story of Leah's adoption. But the message could have an even broader appeal. It could, for example, invoke the saying "Bloom where you are planted." And I can see the allegory also giving comfort to children who have just experienced a family move, especially a move to a foreign country. The symbolism could be taken even further to unfamiliar and even scary situations where children might find themselves. Ironically, Leah, of whom the seed is a personification, did indeed find herself in such a situation when she was diagnosed with cancer in 2006. (She is, thankfully, now in remission.) That one can bloom and be loved and valued in the most unexpected and surprising of places is indeed a positive and powerful truth.

I recommend this book because of it's cheerful illustrations and enduring theme of hope...a lesson that is applicable to a number of life circumstances, even beyond the adoption process.

You can read an excerpt here. This is a dear book.

The Bluestocking Guide review

The Bluestocking Guide
December 3, 2010

Red in the Flower Bed
by Brooke Bonett

This little book helps children understand adoption, particularly interracial adoption. The story is about a little poppy seed that is sent away to grow and bloom away from it "mother" because it is better for the little seed.

It was a very cute story. I liked the message that having diversity in the family life is a good thing.

I don’t have any children of my own, but if I did I would definitely use this book to teach them about adoption, particularly if I was doing an interracial adoption or I know someone who was doing an interracial adoption. I think a child will be able to grasp the concepts in this book quite easily.

Actually even if you aren’t considering adoption, I think this is an excellent primer for teaching children that racial diversity is a good thing.

But that’s me.

LovLivLife Reviews

LovLivLife Reviews
December 2, 2010

Book Tour: Red in the Flower Bed by Andrea Nepa
by Chasity

Red in the Flower Bed marks two firsts for me. 1.) The first childrens title I've read on Kindle and online 2.) Experiencing the unique illustration style.

The first is just about self-explanatory. I will say that Online vs. Kindle (black and white)- Online wins hands down but a physical copy is always ideal.

Two, the illustrations are a treasure. Why? As a mom I try to tell my children stories from scratch. Scratch meaning no books just my own creation told orally with voice fluctuation, hand gestures, etc. Be it a true memory, complete fiction or a mix of the two. The purpose is to have my daughters exercise their imagination. I want them to dream up on their own.

Red in the Flower Bed's illustrations are a simple treat and reinforces what I'm trying to instill by orally telling stories. The illustrations are just enough to attract/engage attention but gave my daughters freedom to generate their own thoughts. They were not bombarded with too much happenings on the page- not that plentiful is bad but a nice mix of book types is sure to please. The illustration style is a combination of scrap-booking and arts & crafts. Overall, one of the main highlight of this book.

Then there is the moral of this story which is mentioned above: Interracial adoption. Loving and embracing diversity. At the end of the story I ask my girls: "What would be more dazzling? A garden with only blue flowers or a garden with all sorts of colors?" I mentioned a few local gardens in our area and spoke about different flowers and what's so special about each one. Since my girls are comprehensive and inquisitive taking the discussion to the next level and talking about how it relates to people was a great extension. I suggest if your child is young just a brief mention of the moral or just sticking to the garden will serve as an introduction that can later be built upon.

Red in the Flower Bed not only has a valuable message that we must share with our little ones but it also has a number of extensions that I am able to implement to either extend the moral of the story, learn about plant growth or just have fun. Which we did have fun. My 6 yo daughter made this drawing:



All in all, I found this poem book with illustrations a delight. The poem is easy to pick up on that the second and third time reading through my children were recalling from memory the sentence endings.

Thank you to Tribute Books for the opportunity to review this title and be apart of the book tour. The pleasure was all mine and my girls.

Purchase this book:
Amazon / Smashwords / Tribute Books / Barnes&Noble.com

Forever, For Always, No Matter What Review

Forever, For Always, No Matter What
December 2, 2010

Red in the Flower Bed
by Jennifer Dunlap

We were asked to participate in a blog hop for the review of a new adoption book from Tribute Books. The book is called Red in the Flower Bed and is written by an adoptive mom. I happen to personally enjoy reading books to my children that rhyme and this book is a fun read. Not only is it fun, it has an important message. It doesn't hit the reader over the head with adoption language, which can be a nice change of pace. However the adoption theme is obvious in a gentle way.

I think my two favorite parts are in the beginning when the the poppy is sad to see the seed leave and at the end when the daisy says "best of all, look down the row, we now have a complete rainbow" so fitting for our family! We always enjoy a book that opens up adoption discussion in a positive way.

This book would be a welcome addition to any adoptive family's library. For more information on how to add this book to your home or to give as a gift please visit Red in the Flower Bed as well as Tribute Books

Thrifty Mamma's Brain Food Review

Thrifty Mamma's Brain Food
December 2, 2010

Red in the Flower Bed: An Interracial Adoption Story and Blog Tour
by Paula Schuck

Red In The Flower Bed is a sweet, imaginative and yet simple twist on a child's adoption story. I am an adoptive parent of two children, an adoption advocate, speaker and writer and our home library is more than full of books that are for all ages and stages of the adoption journey. But, this one had a new twist I'd not yet seen which is why I recommend it.

Andrea Nepa has taken a seed as a metaphor and while that might seem logical and simplistic, I haven't actually seen it used in this manner. The seed is a lovely metaphor for an adopted child. While this book specifically tackles interracial adoption, I felt it missed the marketing mark here and limited itself. If you look at this as a story of any adoptee, it makes sense and appeals to a wider audience in my opinion. The child is like the seed of a poppy here, blowing in the wind, carried to a different pasture. The pasture is an obvious reference to the family created by adoption.

This story is aimed at 3 to 6 years olds and is reliant on rhyme and cute cutout style pictures. "So there among the violet, rose and marigold the little black dot settled into her spot." What a surprise she will be when she blooms and is a bright red poppy in a field of predictable colours.

Red In the Flower Bed is a nice addition to anyone's adoption library. It is a gentle, sensitive story. Red in The Flower Bed is a nice alternative to the many animal metaphors and characters that are often used to explore themes of differences and adoption in children's fiction. This story is clever and a good way to work the topic of adoption onto your bookshelf and into your child's life.

One Upon A Twilight Review

Once Upon A Twilight
December 1, 2010

Red in the Flower Bed Book Review
by Yara Santos

Red in the Flower Bed is a very cute and colorful book! It is a great example of acceptance and loving people for who they are, which is something that is very important in the world today. The plot is great, especially the part where the plant drops the seed and the wind carries it to a place where it will be able to grow. I thought that was very interesting.

I also loved the beautiful illustrations and I think kids would enjoy them as well because they help you to visualize the story even more. However, one thing I thought that could be added was a picture to symbolize the part of the story where they talk about the Sweet Pea Blossoms and Zinnias. Overall, I really enjoyed this book

Imprisoned in My Bones review

Imprisoned in My Bones
December 1, 2010

Red in the Flower Bed Blog Tour
by Anne Bender

Andrea Nepa has written a book for children about the joys of inter-racial adoption based on her experience of having adopted a daughter from Vietnam. When Nicole at Tribute Books approached me about writing a review of “Red in the Flower Bed” and told me the subject matter of the book, I jumped at the chance. My sister and her husband had adopted two beautiful and amazing bi-racial children over 20 years ago and I have seen first hand both the struggles and the joys she experienced in raising children who look different from their parents.

The story line of “Red in the Flower Bed” was a very simple rhyme and the artwork consisted of a colorful scrapbook theme, which happens to be my favorite kind of art in children's books because it looks like something that children could create themselves.

The story follows a poppy seed as it falls from the center of the flower and floats away in the wind to find a home in a garden bed filled with a large variety of colorful flowers. What I especially loved about this story was that the subject matter was very subtle; if I hadn’t known ahead of time that this story was a portrayal of inter-racial adoption, I would not have picked up on the clues. So often children's books that are written to support a cause or to teach a lesson, up being technical and preachy and the children for whom they are written become disinterested, and the parents reading these type of books often dislike the story. However, “Red in the Flower Bed” was not preachy or technical at all, it was just a simple and charming story that both children and parents are bound to enjoy and could lead to many loving discussions about bi-racial adoption.

My thanks to Nicole for this opportunity to review “Red in the Flower Bed!”