WE ADOPTED A BABY LAMB

Adopting a young animal teaches responsibility and caring.

When Ila and her family move to the country in search of a simpler life, they take on more than they imagine when they adopt a newborn lamb. Ila lives with her hipster parents, her “grumpy teenage sister,” her baby sister, and three cats. The lamb, christened Albert, gives her a focus for maternal love and an education in caring for a young animal. Although the lamb is very tiny (“smaller than our cats!”), he has outsize needs. At first he lives in the kitchen but, due to his bathroom habits, is quickly moved to an outside barn, where he requires regular feeding and protection from predators. In spite of his material needs, he wins the hearts of the family. Even sister Sosi becomes less grumpy when Albert is around. As the lamb grows, Ila develops a routine for feeding and caring for him but worries about his need for socialization. When Ila notices that family members act a lot like sheep around Albert, she comes to the important realization that the family is fulfilling the role of the sheep’s flock even though they are not sheep. This sweetly naïve tale is told through cute cartoon-style black-and-white line drawings with pops of red, all on a somewhat harsh yellow background, and Ila’s straightforward narration, the latter set in a typeface that emulates hand printing. All human characters present White. (This book was reviewed digitally with 8-by-16-inch double-page spreads viewed at 75% of actual size.)

Baby farm animals are fun, but they grow up—this book provides a sweet vicarious experience.