We Wanted You (Single Titles) - Hardcover

Liz Rosenberg, distinguished author, poet, and professor of children's literature, lives in Binghamton, New York. Her second book for Roaring Brook Press is On Christmas Eve.

Peter Catalanotto is a widely admired author and illustrator, whose second book for Roaring Brook Press is Happy Birthday America! He lives in southeastern Pennsylvania.

School Library Journal A poetic text and Catalanotto's glowing illustrations distinguish this book on adoption. . . . Although there are quite a few good books on this subject for parents to use with their children, this one is a lovely choice.   Publishers Weekly With a simple, poetic elegance befitting her tender subject matter, Rosenberg taps into the feelings of longing, love and joy that accompany the adoption of a child. Catalanotto's images create an effective subplot: on the occasion of their son's graduation from high school, a couple reminisces about the boy they embraced as part of their family even before he was born. The author creates a warm story of one family's experience, yet incorporates accessible explanations of adoption applicable to many situations ("Somewhere in the world a mother gave birth to you, a father gave life to you. We weren't your first father and mother"; "One day we got a telephone call telling us to come. For you"). Working within the emotional rhythms of this heartfelt trip down Memory Lane, Catalanotto presents a series of radiant paintings that form a kind of treasured photo album. With a combination of contemporary and timeless background details, he depicts young Enrique as an infant being rocked to sleep by his father, a beaming boy at the beach and, ultimately, as a proud young man washing his car and heading off to college. A welcome addition to the canon of picture books on the subject.