Starred Review for Kirkus Reviews (Tue Feb 28 00:00:00 CST 2023)

A basic guide to how plants and animals make more plants and animals.There are lots of strategies. "But," Roy writes, "the pattern stays the same: meet, merge, and create something new." Studiously avoiding direct references to human reproduction in her narrative (though covering it in her author's note), Roy opens with simple language and then goes on to explain in greater detail how various flora and fauna accomplish each element in the pattern-from attracting mates ("Future Prince," reads a sign next to a frog) and making gametes to creating external seeds and eggs or internal safe spaces for early stages of development, leading up to birth. Her language is specific enough to include terms like uterus and amnion, and, though she's not above putting party hats on a newly hatched snake, in general she depicts the insides and outsides of her figures with naturalistic precision, adding select but helpful anatomical labels and explanatory captions. Her fulsome backmatter includes suggestions for backyard nature study and a detailed account of the "incredible dance moves" performed by splitting chromosomes during meiosis. Meanwhile, glimpses early on of a possibly biracial pregnant couple with a child that culminate in a closing double gatefold view of their arrival at a picnic attended by people diverse in age and skin color silently add a certain other species to the lineup.A perennially hot topic explored with a deft mix of specific details and light touches. (glossary, selected sources, list of species that appear in the book) (Nonfiction. 6-11)

School Library Journal Starred Review (Wed Feb 01 00:00:00 CST 2023)

Gr 3–6— A young, light-skinned family takes a walk through a forested park and happens upon a doe who's just given birth to a fawn. What follows is a closer look at the wild plants and animals, from trees and flowers to fish and frogs, "making more" all around them. This process of meiosis, when an egg cell and a sperm cell meet and merge, in all its various forms fills the rest of the book. Roy's illustrations are, as always, a delight: realistic yet stylized; full of warmth and energy; and rich with the colors of the Pacific Northwest. Each method of fertilization is explained through diagrams that provide greater detail. Human reproduction is left out of the book, though young readers may arrive at questions about the mother in the family's pregnant belly and the birthday party where they arrive at the end. VERDICT Highly recommended for nonfiction and even parenting collections, where it will fly off the shelf with science-loving kids and neutralize any adult melodrama around talking to kids about sex.— Amy Fellows

ALA Booklist (Mon Jun 05 00:00:00 CDT 2023)

This hybrid offering about the cycle of life begins as a picture book with sparse sentences and facing spreads of a family walking through a forest. These introductory pages explain that most new life comes from a process involving meeting, merging, and creating. These are followed by 15 pages filled with paragraphs about genes, DNA, genomes, and gametes, followed by discussions of egg and sperm cells, types of fertilization, gestation periods, and the new creation of various animals and plants. The basic explanations and relatable examples are supported by full-page illustrations, diagrams, and flowcharts, but will still be too sophisticated for most young readers to manage on their own. After discussions of survival expectancies for wild animals, mutations, and biodiversity, the book reverts to the picture-book format for a few pages of reassuring messages, a glossary, and additional information from the author. This is a very gentle way of introducing reproduction to children through examples they can observe in their own backyards. It also provides adults with support and vocabulary for the inevitable follow-up questions.

Kirkus Reviews (Fri Oct 04 00:00:00 CDT 2024)

A basic guide to how plants and animals make more plants and animals.There are lots of strategies. "But," Roy writes, "the pattern stays the same: meet, merge, and create something new." Studiously avoiding direct references to human reproduction in her narrative (though covering it in her author's note), Roy opens with simple language and then goes on to explain in greater detail how various flora and fauna accomplish each element in the pattern-from attracting mates ("Future Prince," reads a sign next to a frog) and making gametes to creating external seeds and eggs or internal safe spaces for early stages of development, leading up to birth. Her language is specific enough to include terms like uterus and amnion, and, though she's not above putting party hats on a newly hatched snake, in general she depicts the insides and outsides of her figures with naturalistic precision, adding select but helpful anatomical labels and explanatory captions. Her fulsome backmatter includes suggestions for backyard nature study and a detailed account of the "incredible dance moves" performed by splitting chromosomes during meiosis. Meanwhile, glimpses early on of a possibly biracial pregnant couple with a child that culminate in a closing double gatefold view of their arrival at a picnic attended by people diverse in age and skin color silently add a certain other species to the lineup.A perennially hot topic explored with a deft mix of specific details and light touches. (glossary, selected sources, list of species that appear in the book) (Nonfiction. 6-11)

Publishers Weekly (Fri Oct 06 00:00:00 CDT 2023)

“Everywhere, all around you, life is making more.” Roy begins this elegantly illustrated nonfiction study with views of a pale-skinned human family—one of whom is visibly pregnant—hiking through a park while new life emerges all around them. Snakes entwine, a beetle lays brilliant yellow eggs, a doe licks a fawn. Scientific prose details how two sets of genes “meet and merge,” describing how when various forms of flora and fauna “make more,” the process passes along genetic material (“Genes are the chemical instructions inside of cells that tell them what to do”). Full spreads expound on plant reproduction, mammalian gestation, and the early life stages of fish and amphibians. Each section includes a vivid, naturalistic watercolor portrait, explanatory text, and detailed, sometimes playful watercolor diagrams. Clear text and intimate portraits make this a thorough, substantive resource. Extensive back matter includes a glossary and author’s note. Ages 7–10. (Mar.)