Wish, Miracle, Me! by Lindsey Coad is a heartwarming children's book about unconventional family ties. Expertly illustrated by Kim MacPherson, this story follows our protagonist Harvey as she explores what it means to be a donor-conceived person. Having started as a wish in her solo mama's heart, Harvey blooms into an artistic teen who shares her happy childhood milestones. Surrounded by her modern family, she thrives in her incredible life while holding onto hope that she would someday meet the person who is a part of her. Harvey embraces her identity and her past with a perfect blend of self-love, curiosity, vulnerability, and courage uniquely her own. Designed to open an honest conversation with your child about family, identity, belonging, and resiliency, this book is a must-read!

When I first read Wish, Miracle, Me!, I was intrigued by its concept as being a donor-conceived person is a rarity. Lindsey Coad has beautifully captured a little girl's journey of being different from her peers and loving herself regardless. She had taught me that our society's outdated social constructs should not define a family, and we should always embrace our identity as it's what makes us who we are. I adored watching Harvey mature into a young adult secure in her place in the world and her family. A child can easily understand the story's underlying themes of self-love, family, and belonging. The colorful and eye-catching illustrations capture a child's attention while the book's lessons are ingrained in them forever.

All life is a miracle. Two people come together in one way or another and create that miracle of love and joy. We all have parents, most of whom we know. But sometimes things happen a bit differently. A woman who has no significant other might wish to become a mother, a single mom, with the gift of donor sperm. It’s a difficult concept for young people to understand, but a child conceived in such a manner might want to know their missing parent who made his or her life happen. That’s what happened with Harvey. Her mother conceived her based on love for an unborn, unknown child that was yet to be. Harvey grows up basking in her mother’s love, but there's the father she’s never met and she wonders if she ever will meet him. There are so many things about Harvey that she believes came from her father – like her artistic talents.

Lindsey Coad’s picture book story, Wish, Miracle, Me! A Modern Family Love Poem for Donor-Conceived Children, is a touching look at another view of the family unit. The plot unfolds in an abstract, free verse poem with key bullet points that identify Harvey for who she is. For Harvey, family means more than just herself and her mother: there’s the unknown absent parent, of course, the father whose donation made her life possible, but there are also many donor siblings, another form of an extended family with everyone brought together by “genetic strings.” The poem is powerful, insightful, and full of love as Harvey grows up and becomes the woman she is meant to be: “the miracle that is/ Me!” Powerful words full of love. Beautifully told and presented.