Adopted: the Ultimate Teen Guide. Suzanne Buckingham Slade, $65.50

ADOPTED: THE ULTIMATE TEEN GUIDE enables young adults to explore their feelings as they read about the personal feelings of others. Full of stories, pictures, artwork — this up-to-date resource will help adopted teens move on to stable and happy lives as adults.

Adoptive Families are Families for Keeps: Activity Book. Lissa Cowan, Illustrations by Stephanie Hill. $24.95

As a critical education tool, this activity book will provide social workers, foster parents, caregivers and educators with dynamic and instructive ways to introduce and discuss a wide range of adoption issues with young children. After living with three foster families, Tara is ready to be adopted. Children will follow Tara on her journey from foster care to adoption through a series of activities and a touching story.

The Bean Seed. Judith Bush & Robert Spottswood, $14.95 (ages 4-8)

A picture book for children in foster care or adoptive families, THE BEAN SEED tells the story of a little bean who is lonely, mistrustful and neglected. With the loving care of a gardener who takes the time to nurture him, the bean starts to grow and thrive and set down roots while reaching for the sun.

The Best Family in the World. Susana López & Ulises Wensell, $17.50

Carlotta is anxiously awaiting the arrival of her new family. What will they be like?

Bringing Asha Home. Uma Krishnaswami, illustrated by Jamel Akib, $18.95

It's Rakhi, the Hindu holiday special to brothers and sisters, and Arun wishes he had a sister with whom to celebrate. Soon it looks as if his wish will come true. His parents are going to adopt a baby girl named Asha. She is coming all the way from India, where Arun's dad was born. The family prepares for Asha's arrival, not knowing it will be almost a year until they receive governmental approval to bring Asha home. Arun is impatient and struggles to accept the long delay, but as time passes he finds his own special ways to build a bond with his sister, who is still halfway around the world.

The Day We Met You. Phoebe Koehler, $6.99. Ages 2-5

"The sun shone bright the day we met you." So begins a mother and father's loving description of the joyful, excited preparations for bringing home their adopted baby. Phoebe Koehler's simple affectionate words and soft, rich pastels combine to create the perfect read-aloud for adoptive parents to explain the adoption experience to even the youngest children.

Ellen’s Book of Life. Joan Givner, $12.95

During the most difficult summer of her life, Ellen finally begins the search for her birth mother. The results are surprising, moving and often very funny, turning life upside down in more ways than one.

Finding Joy. Marion Coste, illustrated by Yong Chen, $22.00

FINDING JOY is the moving story of a mother who travels to China to adopt her daughter. With three almost grown children at home, she and her husband feel their family is not complete and they miss the joy of a baby in the home. Beautifully illustrated by Yong Chen, Marion Coste’s story tells how infant girls in China are often abandoned by families who have surpassed the “one-child” law or have delivered a daughter rather than the longed-for son.

Help! I’ve Been Adopted. Brenda McCreight, $16.99

HELP! I'VE BEEN ADOPTED will answer many of the questions that adoptees have about their lives. This book presents issues such as “Why do birth parents give up or lose their children?”, “What is attachment and how does it affect my life?” “How do adoptive parents get matched to a child?” “Who makes all the decisions about a child’s life” and more.

This book is full of helpful suggestions to promote discussion between the adoptive parents and the child, and it will help social workers and counselors gain a new perspective on how to support the early stages of an adoption placement.

Journey Home. Lawrence McKay, Jr., illustrated by Dom & Keunhee Lee, $10.95

Ten-year-old Mai is off to Vietnam with her mother to search for her mother’s birth family. Adopted in North America after the Vietnam War, Mai’s mother has always wanted to see her birthplace and look for her other family but Mai is alternately fearful of what they will find and excited by everything they experience.

The Little Green Goose. Adele Sansone, Illustrated by Anke Faust, $18.95 (ages 4-8)

Mr. Goose longs for a baby of his own, but when he finds an egg to sit on it hatches into a most unusual chick! This is story about the families that love makes.

Lucy's Family Tree. Karen Halvorsen Schreck, illustrated by Stephen Gassler, $8.95

When Lucy comes home from school with a family tree assignment, she asks her parents to write her a note to excuse her from the task. Lucy's adoption from Mexico makes her feel as though her family is too "different," but her parents gently and wisely challenge Lucy to think some more about it and to find three families that are the "same."

Maggie Can’t Wait. Frieda Wishinsky, Illustrated by Dean Griffiths, $9.95

Maggie can't wait to show her friends the picture of her soon-to-be adopted sister, but she is mortified by their reaction. Maybe her parents shouldn’t adopt that baby after all. MAGGIE CAN’T WAIT features a little girl with a big imagination as she dreads the arrival of a new adopted sister and learns how easy it is to make up her own mind.

A Mother for Choco. Keiko Kasza, $6.99 Ages 4-7; Boardbook version $9.99

Choco is a little yellow bird who lives all alone. He wishes he had a mother, but who could she be? One day, he decides to search for a mother. First he asks Mrs. Giraffe, but she is not Choco's mother-she doesn't have wings like he does. Then he asks Mrs. Penguin, but she doesn't have big round cheeks like Choco. None of the animals seems to be right for Choco. Will he ever find a mother?

Rebecca's Journey Home. Brynn Olenberg Sugarman, illustrated by Michelle Shapiro, $21.95

Two young Jewish brothers eagerly await the arrival of their new baby sister from Vietnam.

Rosie’s Family: an Adoption Story. Lori Rosove & Heather Burrill, $9.50

ROSIE’S FAMILY is a story about belonging in a family, regardless of differences.

Star of the Week. Darlene Friedman & Roger Roth, $23.99

A story of love, adoption and brownies with sprinkles.

The Starlight Baby. Gillian Shields, illustrated by Elizabeth Harbour, $16.95

Gillian Shields' poetic expression of maternal love and Elizabeth Harbour's beautiful watercolors will melt hearts. This is an exquisite picture book for mothers and children to cherish.

Sweet Moon Baby: an Adoption Tale. Karen Henry Clark, illustrated by Patrice Barton, $20.99

On a summer night in China, a baby girl was born ...

Ten Days and Nine Nights: an Adoption Story. Yumi Heo, $18.99

A little girl counts the days until her mother and new baby sister come home from South Korea.

The Thunderstruck Stork. David Olson & Lynn Munsinger, $17.50 (ages 4-7)

Webster the stork is proud of his work delivering animal babies. But when he crashes into a hot-air balloon, something goes wrong in his head. Soon the bats are brought a young moose, the sparrows get a piglet, and two tiny frog parents receive an enormous newborn elephant! This wise and delightful story shows what really makes a family. Lynn Munsinger’s comical illustrations are the perfect complement to David J. Olson’s hilarious rhyming tale of this mixed-up stork.

We Are Adopted. Jennifer Moore-Mallinos, illustrated by Rose M. Curto, $8.50 (Ages 4–7)

A little girl is very excited because now she has a baby brother—an adopted baby brother. A few years earlier, she too had been adopted. Like the children in this story, adopted kids learn that their adoptive parents wanted them very much, and love them very dearly and will be encouraged to explore their own feelings about problems that might be bothering them, or to find answers to a wide array of questions that puzzle them.

What is Adoption? Helping Non-Adopted Children Understand Adoption. Sofie Stergianis & Rita McDowall. $15.99

This book helps adults explain and talk with children about adoption, answering their many questions with clear, factual and loving answers. For parents, relatives, teachers, counsllors, caregivers and other caring adults.

Why I Chose You: 100 Reasons Why Adopting You Made Us a Family. Gregory Lang, $16.75

WHY I CHOSE YOU captures the special moments that reflect the importance of family ties in this series of beautiful photographs of adoptive families.