Because You Are My Baby Book

I'll teach you everything I know, and guide you as you learn and grow, because you are my baby. A mama coyote sings moon songs through the night just as a mama human cuddles her baby and lays her down to sleep. This precious story illustrates that the love a mother feels for her child is not unlike the affection animal mothers in the desert show their offspring. Beautifully written text is lovingly complemented by Sylvia Long's wonderful illustrations, making this an important book for parents and children to share together.

School Library Journal

PreS- Ward's text is full of comfort and support for a loved baby, reassuring readers that the featured animal mother will always protect her child. The rhyming text identifies different characteristics of each desert parent, like the one who finds shade for her youngster in the hot sun, another that gathers twigs to make a nest. Each spread includes a full-page illustration of the animals in their habitat, facing a smaller picture showing what a human mother would use in the same situation, such as a sun hat. This book is a true partnership between text and art-Long's illustrations extend Ward's verses from being just about the animal world to being about all mothers. Her pictures are full of detail, making the desert landscape lush and full of life, and showing the habitat's true beauty. Unfortunately, none of the animals are identified in the text or in a key, making this lovely book most appropriate for children familiar with the desert locale.-Susan E. Murray, Glendale Public Library, AZ