Welcome Home

by Aimee Reid, Rashin Kheiriyeh (Illustrator)

Overview

This cozy, lyrical picture book is an ode to the joy of welcoming a new baby—perfect for baby showers and new parents!

There are so many people waiting to welcome a new baby into the world! First mom and dad, then siblings, then grandparents—then aunts, uncles, cousins, and neighbors surround the new little one with love. With gentle, rhyming text and warm, exuberant illustrations, this celebratory book shows babies how much they are cherished.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781534438866
Publisher:	Beach Lane Books
Publication date:	01/04/2022
Pages:	32
Sales rank:	1,104,799
Product dimensions:	8.00(w) x 10.00(h) x 0.50(d)
Age Range:	3 Months to 8 Years

About the Author

Aimee Reid is an author with a background in education and editing. She taught high school English, music, and special education before she began to work full-time as a writer. She is the author of Mama’s Day with Little Gray, Welcome Home, and First Morning Sun.

Rashin Kheiriyeh has a master’s degree in graphic design and a doctorate in illustration and has illustrated more than eighty books in half a dozen languages, including Welcome Home by Aimee Reid and Story Boat by Kyo Maclear, a Kirkus Reviews Best Book of the Year. She was a 2017 Maurice Sendak fellow and is a lecturer at the University of Maryland. She was born in Khorramshahr, Iran, and now lives in Washington, DC. Visit her at RashinArt.com.

Editorial Reviews

03/21/2022

Relatives welcome their newest family member in this moving picture book in rhyme. From mother and father to siblings, grandparents, extended family, and neighbors, a jolly crew of friendly faces sociably greet a tan-skinned, rosy-cheeked infant with reiterative phrasing: “ ‘Welcome home,’ say the sisters,/ excited to see/ the adorable baby/ atop Mama’s knee.” Oceanic blues, peachy pinks, and sunny yellows infuse Kheiriyeh’s whimsical multimedia paintings, which depict relations of varied skin tones (including the baby’s Black and white siblings) and exaggerated body proportions lavishing attention on the eager, active newborn. As the busy domestic meet-and-greets build, segueing into a cheerful walk in the park, an idealized and irresistible picture of community is formed, amplifying the book’s message of earnest affection and welcome. Ages up to 8. (Jan.)

Publishers Weekly

06/17/2022

PreS-Gr 2—Home is a place where family and friends make someone feel loved. In this sweet and simple story, a new baby is welcomed home for the first time and everyone is there. Greeted by loving grandparents, a doting aunt and uncle, playful siblings and cousins, as well as some friendly neighbors, this baby is embraced with open arms. Throughout the day, whether feeding, napping, or being changed, the child brings joy to the household. Although the arrival of a new baby is more complicated than this story suggests, the emphasis is on all the people in a newborn's life and their ensuing happiness. Acrylic illustrations combine a cool background with often warmer-toned characters; the baby is a pinkish light tan, and the people who surround the baby have skin tones that range from lighter pink to deep brown. In each spread, pets, the decor, and stuffed animals are shown smiling as well. The rhyming couplets used throughout never feel forced and follow a patterned structure that young readers will quickly grasp. Even though this multigenerational household is also multiracial, this family appears to have a very traditional structure, nearly idyllic. Pair it with books that display different kinds of families. VERDICT This cheerful title may be too simplistic for some collections, but consider including alongside titles that showcase an array of family structures.—Louie Lauer

School Library Journal

2021-12-27
A racially diverse adoptive extended family welcomes home a new baby.

In rhyming quatrains, the family members successively introduce themselves to a White newborn who is never named or gendered. They include White heterosexual parents, siblings (one Black and two White), two White grandparents, a White aunt, a Black uncle, and two cousins who appear to be mixed-race. As each relation bids the infant welcome, the verse captures their various personalities and reactions, but always, the common thread is utter joy. While the text’s cheerful, singsong cadences are likely to hold children’s interest, the rhymes occasionally scan awkwardly or sound forced. The omniscient narration maintains a somewhat distant perspective throughout the story. Kheiriyeh’s illustrations are rendered in acrylic, oil paint, ink, and oil pastel, with a light pencil line. Collaged hand-painted paper and appliquéd feather details add a touch of inventiveness. The elongated proportions and curved contours of the characters make them feel larger than life; however facial features lack nuance. The bright pinks and blues of the home’s cheerful interiors and of the clan’s clothing both create and challenge gendered associations. Family members and neighbors present a wide range of skin tones, hair textures, and body types.

A sweet but lightweight portrayal of the ritual of welcoming a new baby. (Picture book. 2-4)

Kirkus Reviews