This is a great book about diverse families. There are families with two dads, two moms, and lots of other scenarios: foster care, grandparent and grandchild, divorced parents, multiracial families. The list goes on.

Illustrations are great. Overall, light and cute. ( )

Apicture-book affirmation of family diversity.

The opening double-page spread depicts a diverse class of 13 children sitting at their desks in a circle when their teacher asks them to share “what we thought made our family special.” The first-person narrator silently worries. “My family is not like everybody else’s.” The accompanying illustration shows one child, seated at a desk across the circle from the teacher, with eyes downcast, red cheeks, and closed body language. The following spreads are narrated by individual classmates who deliver matter-of-fact, often humorous commentary on their families, augmented by Leng’s appealing cartoon illustrations that lend humor and vitality to characterization. The broad diversity of family constellations is refreshing and ultimately soothing to the worried child from the first spread. After hearing classmates talk about having two moms, two dads, many siblings, divorced parents, a blended family, single parents, mixed-race families, a grandmother who’s “my everything,” and more, the narrator recalls a time when a woman at the park “asked my foster mother to point out her real children. ‘Oh I don’t have any imaginary children,’ Mom said. ‘All my children are real.’ ” This good-natured but firm response is both empowering and instructive, as is the welcome inclusion of a foster family in this thoughtful, needed book.

A-plus fabulous. (Picture book. 3-8)

-Kirkus Review

This is a great picture book that emphasizes the idea that while all families may look a little different, they all are made of up of people who love and care for us. The story is about a class of students and the teacher asks them to tell their classmates what makes their family special. The students share and you see see blended families, families with two dads, two moms, adopted kids, divorced families, families where they look the same, and some who don't look anything alike, a family where the grandma is the caregiver. All the illustrations are sweet and capture the love in each family. I love the way the book ends as well with one student sharing that they were with their adopted mom at the park when a stranger asked which of her children were real, and the mom responds, "oh, I don't have any imaginary children, all my kids are real." Such a great book that all students can see themselves in and have windows into other families as well. ( )

I really enjoyed reading this book. It supports the idea of diversity and talks about how every family looks different. ( )

Note: I received a finished hardcover copy from the publisher at ALA Midwinter 2017 after I had already read and reviewed the book. ( )