Donor Conceived- Resources for Children

Teach your child about their conception story using our list of useful resources- specifically selected for donor conceived children. If you feel unsure about how to introduce the topic to your child, there are numerous picture books you can read to your child.

Books

1. The Pea That Was Me: An Egg Donation Story, by Kimberly A. Kluger-Bell (book). Aimed at 3 to 5 year olds, this book is a great way to start talking to kids about donors, and they will love the “pea people” in the story time and time again.  Available here.
   
2. The Family Book, by Todd Parr (book). There are so many different types of families, and The Family Book celebrates them all in a funny, silly, and reassuring way. Todd Parr includes adopted families, step-families, one-parent families, and families with two parents of the same sex, as well as the traditional nuclear family. Available here.
   
3. What Makes A Baby, by Cory Silverberg (book). This is a book for every kind of family and every kind of child. The story doesn’t gender people or body parts, leaving it open for parents to educate their child without having to erase or alter their own experience.  Available here.
   
4. Extra! By Kaeleigh MacDonald (book). This beautifully illustrated book covers many family building options, and shows that even when parents struggle, they can still make their family, and that being extra is wonderful.  Available here.
   
5. Making Violet: A Sperm Donor Story by Erin DeVorev (book). This honest and simple story of how Violet and her mom discuss how Violet was created using a sperm donor, using the mixing of paints as a metaphor.  Available here.
   
6. Meeting My Brother, by Jennifer L. Duckoff (book). “Meeting My Brother” is a heart-warming, one of a kind children’s book about donor conceived siblings meeting and becoming family. Available here.
   
7. I’ve Got Dibs!: A Donor Sibling Story, by Amy Dorfman (book). This sweet story is of a mother and daughter discussing the young girl’s donor siblings for the first time. The conversation focuses on the special connection a donor-conceived child has with other children conceived using the same donor. I’ve Got Dibs! is a great way to start this conversation with your children, your child’s friends, as well as the adults in your life who may be struggling to understand these unique relationships. Available here.
   
8. The Other F-Word: A Novel, by Natasha Friend (book). Milo has two great moms, but he’s never known what it’s like to have a dad. When Milo’s doctor suggests asking his biological father to undergo genetic testing to shed some light on Milo’s extreme allergies, he realizes this is a golden opportunity to find the man he’s always wondered about. Available here.
   
9. Why Don’t I Have a Daddy?: A Story of Donor Conception, by George Anne Clay (book). A winner of the Mom’s Choice Silver Award for children’s picture books, this book uses a simple approach to presenting the basic facts of anonymous donor conception through the story of a lion cub who notices the different types of families around him.  Available here.
   
10. Little Treasure, by Anat Georgy (book). This children’s book for single moms celebrates love, life, and choice. Filled with sweet illustrations, this book will help single parents by choice tell their children how they came into this world. Available here.
    
11. Mummy’s journey: a kind of fairy tale, by Anja Reiler (book). Anja conceived her daughter with the help of a donor, at a fertility clinic. This book explains to her daughter why she doesn’t have a father, and how she was brought into the world. The book uses simple language and colourful illustrations to explain to a child that it is possible to have a child as a single mother, without a father. Available here.
    
12. Hope & Rosie Have a Baby: The Gift of Family, by Irene Celcer (book). This books follows an inquisitive little boy who learns of his two moms’ quest to have children, and the joy they experience while creating their family through sperm donation and pregnancy. Told in a language a child can understand, read the tale of how both moms welcome their child into a new family, accenting the caring way that they were planned, how much they were wanted, and the kindness of all involved in their creation. Available here.
    
13. You Were Made for Me, by Sheri Sturniolo (book). Using symbolism and sweet rhyming lyrics, a couple experience the hopes, dreams and disappointments of creating a family and how the generosity and love of others grows into the most wonderful gift. The book introduces the topics of being born from sperm, egg or embryo donation, to a young child. Available here.
    
14. Zak’s Safari: A Story About Donor-Conceived Kids of Two-Mom Families, by Christy Tyner (book). When the rain spoils Zak’s plan for a safari adventure, he invites the reader on a very special tour of his family instead. Zak shows us how his parents met, fell in love, and wanted more than anything to have a baby—so they decided to make one. In the first half of the book, Zak teaches us about his biological origins. Using simple but accurate language, we learn about sperm and egg cells, known-donors, donors from sperm banks, and instructions called genes that make up who we are. Zak’s enthusiasm, combined with his scientific curiosity and gratitude for his inherited “awesome genes” make him the perfect tour guide for this contemporary conception story. Age 4-8.  Available here.
    
15. You Are My Wish Come True, by Marianne Richmond (book). Barley Bear loves to hear about how he was Mama’s special wish. So begins ‘You Are My Wish Come True’, a tender tale of devotion between parent and child. Settled into their favourite cuddle spot, Mama reassures Barley that he was wished for, prayed for and waited for. And that he is far more beautiful and precious than she could have ever imagined!  Available here.
    
16. You were meant to be! by Sherry Keen (book) This book uses colourful illustrations and simple ideas to help explain egg and sperm donation to young children. The inclusive theme makes it accessible to all types of families and expresses gratitude to the generous donors who help make families’ dreams come true. This book is a mother’s attempt to answer her own children’s questions about this complicated topic while keeping the focus on the most important fact of all, how truly loved they are. Available here.