Illustrations by Charles Vess
Publisher: Harry N. Abrams
Release Date: October 7, 2014
A large, loving family in the 1930s Dust Bowl finds a wild baby in the tumbleweeds. In some ways she fits perfectly in their family and in others, she doesn't at all. The youngest daughter is especially wary of her. Eventually, the entire family warms up the the Tumbleweed Baby, but not before questioning whether they should return her.
The setting of this story was interesting and unique, written in a fun dialect and not something that you see every day. At first, the illustrations didn't draw me in, but I found them growing on me as the story went on. My real problem with the story was in the 'aboutness'. At first, I thought this would be a cute adoption folk-like tale. However, when the family starts to discuss whether they should just return the tumbleweed baby, I instantly knew this would not be an appropriate book to read to a child in foster care or who has been adopted. These kids already have a lot of abandonment issues and worry about fitting in with the family. The idea that their family, or even one sibling, would not like them and their behavior would make their parents think about returning them is no bueno.
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