I Love You Like Crazy Cakes

by Rose A. Lewis, Jane Dyer (Illustrator)

This story of a woman who travels to China to adopt a baby girl, based on the author's own experiences, is a celebration of the love and joy a baby brings into the home. Full color.

Genres: Picture Books, Adoption, Childrens, Family, Nonfiction, Realistic Fiction, China

32 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2000

Reviews

[Julie]

Ages 3-6.

I wanted to like this one more than I did. I don't think I would use this as a read-aloud in a classroom. The pictures are sweet, very beautiful. The concept is one that is often over looked, one of adoption.

But the book is written as a mother talking to her baby, and it's almost too personal to be generalized. Although I was reading to a seven year old, several times she would say, "Me?" after I read from the book, because it references "I" as the mother and "you" to refer to the baby. So I wish it were told from a different perspective.

For a similar reason, I wouldn't read, "Love You Forever" to my class. Those are books for parents to read to their children, since they are written from that perspective. I hope I can find another book or two with adoption as the subject to include in my classroom library. I would consider putting this one in a class library for children to look at themselves, though.

[Blondie]

As an adoptive parent, I am always on the search books to help reinforce or validate my children's experience with adoption.

My daughter loved the illustrations, and could really connect with the story as it was similar to her own in many ways.
Although we are a 2 parent family, I was pleased to find this story shared from a single adoptive mother's view, as that is so rarely the case with adoption books.

I would note a word of caution to those anticipating sharing it with your adopted child, however.
While some children love the story, many others in our adoption group were not emotionally ready to deal with the sadness in the last few pages, as the adoptive mother reflects and thinks about the birth mother and her losses.
Read it first, and then think about how your own child might react to the content and delivery.

Overall, a great read for young children to familiarize them with adoption as a valid family choice, with caution to be aware of their readiness or emotional reactions.

[Leslie Reyes]

I have never felt my heart feel so warm when reading a book. This book is a book I will forever cherish. However, I don't think I would read this out loud in a classroom. I think that this book and its topic on adoption should be read a one-on-one. The illustrations on the book were very subtle and the colors were pastel color. I appreciated this from the novel because it helps address the topic of adoption and overall love.

[Cassidy Goddard]

I love you Like Crazy Cakes is a biography written by Rose Lewis. The story is illustrated by Jane Dyer. This book is written as a biography about the author Rose Lewis. Although the story is a biography about her life, it is written also as if it is a fairy tale. In the beginning of the story she starts off by saying "Once upon a time". This story is about a mother in America who is wanting to adopt a baby, and her journey through adoption in China. She writes about the paperwork process, going to China, coming back to America, and how she fell in love instantaneously. This was a great story about adoption. The problem posed in this story, was how the American mother wished the Chinese mother could know her daughter and know she was safe. The style of writing was very easy to read. The sentences were short and easy, so this book could definitely be read to young children (PreK and K). This story would be interesting to children because they would get to see families that may not necessarily look the same, but loved each other. This would be a great way to introduce different types of families to students as well. The illustrations of the book were beautiful watercolors that truly represented the cultures. The skin colors were properly portrayed and the culture of China and America was represented well. I think this children's book would be a great diverse book to have in my classroom. Not only does it show different races, but it also shows different family types. The mom of the story was a white, single mother raising a Chinese daughter whom she had adopted. This would be a great way to introduce multiple family views to my students.

[liana]

Peak literature nothing like it, I am in tears

[Cathleen Villegas]

Synopsis:
Author, Rose Lewis, tells her own story of adopting her baby girl from China. She starts off by telling the reader that there once was a little girl who was missing something and there was also a woman who was missing something. We find out a little later that the woman is the author herself and the little girl is her soon to be daughter. The book is actually a letter written to her baby girl. How cool! We follow Lewis as she embarks on her trip to pick up her little girl from China and then as they come home and adjust to their new lives including both the difficulties and incredibly happy moments. Grab your own copy of “I Love You Like Crazy Cakes” to continue following the new relationship between mother and daughter. I absolutely loved this book when I was a kid and now as a twenty two year old and I can still say that it is one of my favorite picture books!

Teaching Connection:
What a cool book to use to teach on adoption and/or family structure. This could be a part of social studies or even SEL. I say it could be used as SEL because a newly adopted child is not only adjusting to a whole new family but also a whole new country! That has got some emotion in it. Teach on adoption and what that looks like. It would be really cool to bring in some parents who have adopted and what that process was like. Or you could bring in an adult friend or a friend’s child who is adopted to talk about what it’s like, the hardships and joys (maybe even a student in your class is adopted and they can speak on it). You can also use this book to talk about family structure. This single caucasian mother adopted a baby girl from China. You could have your students draw a picture of their family and then share. Create a class discussion by having your students sit in a circle and talk about what different kinds of families look like. Compare and contrast.

Why it’s a WOW book:
Not only is it one of my favorites from childhood but it also addresses international adoption which is a topic that is near to my heart. I think this makes it a WOW book because this topic is so important and Rose Lewis writes about it in such a beautiful way. She has written this book to her baby as a kind of long letter. How special that one day when her daughter is old enough, she will have a letter written to her but has also published as a book with beautiful illustrations! This adoption story can bring in so many connections from your students whether that be the Chinese culture, flying on planes, or the largest topic addressed, adoption. The illustrations by Jane Dyer convey the absolute cuteness and playfulness of babies and the words written by Lewis are in simple but deep form. For example, she speaks of a “large room” which is an orphanage. Because that is one big word that would potentially confuse children she translates her story into one that the youngest of children can understand. It’s so good, get it!

[Kari]

Adopting a child is a hopeful and exciting time in a new parent’s life. This book is told from the perspective of a mother explaining her story to her new baby girl. She tells about the “big room” in China where her baby was kept with numerous other baby girls in shared cribs. All of them were taken care of by nannies but were missing what they really needed. She tells her daughter of their first few days together and about the excitement from friends and family when they returned home. Perhaps some people could have issues with this book since it comments on the large number of orphaned baby girls in China. However, this heartfelt story may be a nice way of introducing the topic of adoption to children, especially if they were born in a country different from their parents.

[Trish at Between My Lines]

This was one of the first children's adoption books that we bought. And still my favourite. Lovely illustrations and heartwarming text. I defy to get to the end of this book without crying!

[Tylee Britton-Havard]

I cry. Every time. My mom and dad bought this after adopting me. My adopted sister also has a copy.

[Kennedy Braun]

This book follows a mother’s journey to adopt her daughter from China. It explains the adoption process in very simple terms. The book is from the mother’s point of view as she fills out the adoption paperwork, flies to China and then takes her new baby home. This sweet story fills your heart with love and is a reminder that all families are different.

Adoption and culture are the major themes in this book.

My mother used to read this book to me as a child. She would always tell me that she would've gone through the same process to get me if she had to, because she loved me ‘like crazy cakes’. I think the book strengthened my relationship with my mother in the long run.

This book is a great way to discuss different types of families. I think the book does a great job showing that no matter where the child comes from, the parents love them just as much. You can’t help but smile when you read it.

[Emma Bates]

A very interesting way to possibly describe different types of families to children. This book is actually a biography about the author and I think it takes an interesting turn to describe adaption. An American mother is wanting a child so she flies through paperwork and gets a call that her baby is waiting for her in China. Her has an instant connection with her and the only thing that makes the mother sad is that, her biological mother isn't there to see her and experience all the sweet things this baby has. I think this book is very sweet, and i am certainly an advocate for books telling children about difficult things so i think this book is great. Loved it!

[Amy Layton]

What a sweet and wonderful celebration of adoption!  Teeming with love and adoration, I Love You Like Crazy Cakes features a mother who goes to China to adopt a girl and immediately falls in love.  Based on a true story, this narrative and realistic illustrations rings honestly and sweetly to create something that's just filled to the brim with the delights in life.  It celebrates families, adoption, differences, and a love that one mother has for her daughter.  Perfect for grades 1-3.

Review cross-listed here!

[Savannah Webster]

A sweet story with beautiful illustrations by Jane Dyer about the love of a mother to her child. In this story the mother was missing a child and the child was missing a mother; it turns out they were missing each other. A trip across the world brought them together❤ I think its important to present different family dynamics to my children in their books, not to point out the differences but more so that they can see the similarities. Love is love. .

[Montana]

This book touches on a subject often overlooked: adoption. It is a sweet narrative about a single mother adopting her babygirl from China. Because the book is written in first person (from the mothers POV) this book may difficult for younger children to comprehend. The last couple of pages are very sad as the mother reflects on the child’s loss of her birth mother.

[Mary Madison]

I thought this book was amazing. It discusses a mom who adopts her daughter from China. It is a super sweet book. I might use this book in my classroom to explain the process of adoption to my young students.

[Lynn Davidson]

This tender true story is about a young woman who wanted a child, and about a child in China who needed a family. The reader is taken on their journey when the woman flies to China to meet the baby girl and the bonding that takes place between them when she adopts her. Lovely and sweet with beautiful illustrations in this board book.

[Dolly]

A heartwarming tale of adoption, this story brings the author's experiences of adopting a baby from China to life. The narrative is short and the watercolor illustrations are nicely detailed and convey a lot of emotion.

[Amanda Walz]

A beautiful letter from mother to adopted child.

[Penny]

What an absolutely adorable children's book with beautiful illustrations! Kudos to Rose for the words and to Jane Dyer for the illustrations!!

[Addison Children's Services]

A story of a woman who travels to China to adopt a baby girl, based on the author's own experiences, is a celebration of the love and joy a baby brings into the home. 6/14/2018

[Megan Shieh]

This book is great! i'm also adopted from CHina

[Rose Rosetree]

What an inspiring story of Rose A. Lewis's journey toward motherhood.

Inspiring and touching!

FIVE STORIES for the courage, the sharing, the humanity.

[Anthony]

A story told based on real-life events as the author shares with the reader her quest to adopt a baby girl from China to raise as her own child.

[Lacey Louwagie]

A beautiful, child-friendly book about Chinese adoption written in the second-person from a mother to her daughter. Illustrations are adorable. Couldn't manage to read this one aloud without choking up a bit!

[Dave Lester]

While the artwork in Jane Dyer's book "I love you like Crazy Cakes" is pretty standard fare although the watercolor style is nice to look at. The story by Rose Lewis involves a mother who desires a baby and travels to China to adopt. In other words, this tale's heart is in the right place. The setup is a mother explaining to the baby how she became a part of the family. The mom wanted a baby and the baby (in a room full of other infants waiting to be adopted) instinctively desired to have a mom.

[Ashley]

Title / Author / Publication Date:
I Love You Like Crazy Cakes / Lewis, Rose A. Dyer, Jane. (ill.) / 2000

Genre: Fiction

Format: Picture Book – print

Plot summary:
A story based on the author’s own adoption experience. She describes how she went to China to adopt her baby daughter.

Review citation:
/* Starred Review */ Writing simply, like a love letter from parent to child, Lewis tells the true story of how she wrote to officials in China to find out if she could adopt a baby, and then went to China to bring her home. She takes a long journey there by plane, and falls in love with the tiny girl. "I was so happy that I cried the moment I took you in my arms . . . you cried, too." She shoots a lot of pictures and kisses her "little hands and tiny feet a hundred times." They fly home to meet all the relatives, and when the last cousin leaves, settle down to a lullaby and sweet sleep. The text ends with tears for the baby's Chinese mother, who could not keep her; the last illustration is the Chinese character for love. An exotic but very readable type font adds spice to the gentle narrative. The illustrations are done in light-drenched colors, clear and rosy hues that match the bubbling joy of the text. Patterns in the clouds, in a rose-trimmed teacup, in the baby's clothing and the mother's robes, echo that dulcet rhythm. Sure to delight many families whose own children may have come to this country, and to their families, by the same means, this is also a lovely way to introduce others to the concept of foreign-born adoption. Destined to become a classic. (Picture book. 4-7) (Kirkus Reviews, August 1, 2000)

Section source used to find the material: Book Display Idea: National Adoption Month. Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC)

Recommended age: Ages 4-7

[Mary]

Ages 3-8

From Booklist
Ages 4-8. The title sounds sweet, but this autobiographical story of a woman journalist's trip to China to adopt a baby girl seems less fictional sentiment than reportage. In a gentle manner just right for a picture-book audience, Lewis first explains China's current adoption and placement policies for baby girls. She then goes on to write about one special Chinese baby girl who had everything but a mother, and one American woman who had everything but a baby. "How did someone make this perfect match a world away?" the mother wonders as she looks at the child. The birth mother is not forgotten--at book's end, the adoptive mother cries for her, wanting her to know that her child is safe and happy. It's the joyful wonderment of a mother's seeing her new child, however, that leaves the greatest impact. With Dyer's soft watercolors underscoring the emotion, the book will be wonderful for lap sharing and a companion to Allen Say's Allison (1997). Connie Fletcher

This beautifully illustrated story is one that is a perfect read-aloud to a class (to talk about families) or to a child. The story is written to an adopted daughter from China and really captures the love that the mother has for the daughter. The book is simply written, and short, however many things are accomplished in the book. The author touches on all of the girls that were without mothers, alluding to the one-child policy in China. The author also writes about the birth mother, which I think is a wonderful touch.

[Jackie]

This touching story of a young woman’s journey to a far-away land is compelling and worrisome, yet joyous in the end. Although we do not know the young woman’s name, or the baby’s name, we have a sense that it could be any mother and child. All that truly matters is the love of parent for a child and child’s love for a parent, supplemented by the extended family’s love through support and acceptance.
This young mother wanted a child to love for as long as she could remember and so, many miles away, through the clouds that connect this global community, she flew. She knew in her heart that China was the land of her daughter’s birth, and although so much distance lay between them, she felt a connectivity instantly to the little one that was put into her arms, as the baby touched her heart and spelled love with her eyes.
The love of a mother for a child, whether adopted or not, comes exploding though the story. For love to be true and heartfelt, biological connections do not have to exist. All that truly matters is the unconditional acceptance; belonging and a familial need to bond that is in a mother’s heart and soul.

[Brynn Sugarman]

I recently reread this story, and it is a beautiful book for any child's library. "I Love You Like Crazy Cakes" presents the adoptive process in a personal and touching way. At once multicultural and alternative in its approach to building a family (the narrator is a single Caucasian mother who has adopted a Chinese baby girl,)the story speaks of longing and mutual need and a perfect fit made across the oceans, not just by governmental authorities but seemingly by something deeper and far more spiritual ("How did this happen? How did someone make this perfect match a world away? Did the Chinese people have a special window to my soul?")

The importance of community is stressed: this is a single mother but she is not alone, and when she and her new baby land back home, they are greeted by the entire extended family and friends waiting with "lots of hugs and kisses."

A poignant addition to the book comes on the last page, when the adoptive mother sheds tears for the Chinese mother who could not keep her daughter, and hopes that this birth mom somehow knows that her baby is "safe and happy in the world".

[Jennifer Wardrip]

Reviewed by Me for Kids @ TeensReadToo.com

With I LOVE YOU LIKE CRAZY CAKES, author Rose Lewis brings to lifer her true story of adopting a baby from China. What begins as a letter to Chinese officials ends with bringing home a baby girl, to the delight of her new mother and extended family.

Jane Dyer's illustrations are soft and dreamy, and perfectly compliment the story of Rose and her daughter, Alexandra Mae-Ming Lewis. From that first time of holding her new daughter, to the first night alone back in America, the feelings of love and devotion are evident on every page.

Although this is a book sure to appeal to parents who have adopted children from other countries, specifically China, it's a great story for any child, adopted or not. In fact, my daughter was especially enamored by the book, since it was her first introduction as to what adoption truly means.

Great as a bedtime or any time story, it's no wonder that I LOVE YOU LIKE CRAZY CAKES is well on its way to becoming a children's classic.