Where Do Babies Come From?

This informative picture book depicts a discussion between a parent and child about where babies come from. The child asks if they came from an egg, a pouch, a seed, or even a stork—and though their parent gives them some interesting facts about reptiles, marsupials, and plants, the child still doesn’t have an answer! Eventually the child asks if they came from their mummy’s tummy, and their parent explains that human babies, like other mammals, do indeed come from their mummy’s tummy.

At this stage, the parent turns to the reader and says “If you’d like to maintain the mystery a little longer, skip the next few pages.” After this warning, the parent shows basic diagrams of the male and female reproductive systems, with labels for the vagina, penis, testis, and other parts. The parent explains that after the sperm fertilises the egg, the cells multiply until they form a baby, which grows in the uterus. When the baby is fully developed, it “makes its way down the birth canal and out into the world”. But of course that’s not where this child came from: they came from the author’s imagination!

A lighthearted journey through the basics of conception which will be a great help to parents who want to explain these concepts to their child, but aren’t sure how. Digital flat-colour illustrations with simple lines and a friendly cartoon style give the book an approachable feel. The end of the book suggests the websites AboutKidsHealth and RaisingChildren for kid-friendly explanations of human reproduction.

Depiction of a pregnant woman without clothes on the page about giving birth. Her breasts are covered by her arm and she is pictured from above, and illustrated in flat colour and simple lines. However, her legs are open to indicate that she is in labour, and an arrow indicates the baby’s exit path during birth (p. 20).