Auntie’s Baby

A child discovers their expanding capacity for familial love in McDaniel and Durr’s compassionate, realistic account about welcoming a baby to the family. The young narrator commences with their own birth (“Auntie says I’m the most perfect nephew to ever be born... a brown-skinned doll baby with wise eyes and a deep laugh”) and moves swiftly through their toddlerhood, centering on the deep love provided by the child’s aunt: “But for now and for always, I am still Auntie’s baby.” After the beloved relative returns from the hospital with a newborn, surprising the child, the speaker struggles with the new arrival taking over “my spot” and using “my blankie.” Bedazzled with diamond-shaped stars, unlined digital cartoons expressively highlight the wide-eyed protagonist’s emotional highs and lows. Eventually, the speaker connects with the newcomer’s own “wise eyes,” achieving a satisfying realization about the infinitude of love: “I’m still Auntie’s baby. And my heart is big enough to carry us all.” Ages 4–8. (Apr.)