My Baby

Author: Jeanette Winter

First line: Whoosh! The hot wind blows across the savanna to my village.

Why you should read this book: This is a heartwarming, lovely, cozy story about a woman anticipating the birth of her first child. Inspired by the real-life art of Nakunte Diarra of Mali, it discusses the tradition of bogolan, mud-dyed cloth, an art handed down from mother to daughter. In this book, the young African woman learns to paint the most beautiful bogolan in the village, and when she prepares for her own baby, she frames her months of waiting with the act of creating the perfect cloth for the child.

Why you shouldn't read this book: You think pregnancy is a dirty word, or you just can't handle the thought of a woman sitting on the ground when there are snakes, scorpions, and crocodiles crawling all over the place.