BABY, COME OUT! Illustrated by Ronald Himler Winner of the Dutch Silver Pencil Award Translated into French, German, Danish, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Portuguese, and Japanese Format: Paperback, 32pp. ISBN: 1595726616 Publisher: Star Bright Books, Incorporated Pub. Date: February 2014

          Baby is comfortable right where she is, in Mrs. Tracy's stomach. She doesn't want to be born. Baby's sister and brother, her grandmother and grandfather all think they know how to change her mind. But it is Daddy who finally succeeds--using love and gentle humor.

How I came to write this book

This is the first picture book I wrote, and it has a special place in my heart. Its original title was BABY and it was published by Harper & Row, in 1972. For many years, it appeared in paperback as BABY, COME OUT!  In 2001, the book was reissued with color pictures by Starbright Books. Six months after BABY was originally published, it was selected by School Library Journal as the "worst picture book of the year." When I tell children this, they gasp, wondering how I went on living. Happily, seven publishers in countries around the world thought it was one of the best books of the year and it was translated into German, Danish, Dutch, French, Japanese, Swedish, and Portuguese. The book is still a bestseller in France and Holland, and I am delighted to see BABY, COME OUT! celebrating its 30th anniversary!

Reviews

"Love and kisses conquer all in this quirky, wise, and utterly original tale. The precocious heroine, a baby who is reluctant to be born, needs plenty of coaxing in order to leave the comfortable womb, but she eventually finds family life to be an even cozier delight. This hilarious view of childbirth is a timeless reminder that newborn babies need their family's love more than they need anything else."
Leonard S. Marcus, Parenting Magazine

"The classic, BABY, COME OUT! is a funny picture book about a fetus (don't worry, she looks like a 1-year-old) who's so comfy in Mommy's womb that the entire family has to coax her to leave it. It says that from the beginning, this is a person with needs and interests whom we can talk so and who can hear us."
Parents Magazine

"The pictures have an old-fashioned, delicate air just right for the funny-tender mood of the story. A special book for mothers-to-be to share with their other children."
Horn Book

"Prenatal development gets a fresh, imaginative treatment in this whimsical story of an unborn baby with a mind and a personality of her own."
Publishers Weekly  

"This book is a classic, originally published in 1972, under the title Baby.  It is a charming book, very gentle and has lovely drawings.  It was re-released in 2002, and should be an essential part of every midwife's library, and every family expecting a baby."
Pregnancy and Midwifery web site

Here is a spread of the inside art in the new, full-color BABY, COME OUT! Click the thumbnails for a closer view of each.