Due to a sudden, unexpected passing in the family a few years ago and another more recently and my subsequent (mental) health issues stemming from that, I was unable to download this book in time to review it before it was archived as I did not visit this site for several years after the bereavements. This meant I didn't read or venture onto netgalley for years as not only did it remind me of that person as they shared my passion for reading, but I also struggled to maintain interest in anything due to overwhelming depression. I was therefore unable to download this title in time and so I couldn't give a review as it wasn't successfully acquired before it was archived. The second issue that has happened with some of my other books is that I had them downloaded to one particular device and said device is now defunct, so I have no access to those books anymore, sadly.

This means I can't leave an accurate reflection of my feelings towards the book as I am unable to read it now and so I am leaving a message of explanation instead. I am now back to reading and reviewing full time as once considerable time had passed I have found that books have been helping me significantly in terms of my mindset and mental health - this was after having no interest in anything for quite a number of years after the passings. Anything requested and approved will be read and a review written and posted to Amazon (where I am a Hall of Famer & Top Reviewer), Goodreads (where I have several thousand friends and the same amount who follow my reviews) and Waterstones (or Barnes & Noble if the publisher is American based). Thank you for the opportunity and apologies for the inconvenience.

I received a free ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book tried to broach a subject that I don't think most young kids will understand. It just fell a little short for me.

I received an advanced reader copy of this book to read in exchange for an honestreview via netgalley and the publishers.

This book has a very difficult subject for children and families - loss, bereavement and miscarriages.
This book had a great idea for a story in relation to this topic but I didn't feel it was executed as well as it could have been.

I think the intent behind this book was sweet and it may be comforting ro some but I fwlt that the pressure on the son to make Mama happy was not a good example. The illustrations were pretty.

This is a wonderful way to teach young children about losing a baby. It’s not too hardcore about it, but it gets the point across. The pictures are so cute as well.

Mama Bird Lost an Egg
by Evelyne Fournier
Reading level 3-6 years
Publisher CrackBoom! Books
Publication date : October 22, 2019
Book length : 32 pages
3⭐⭐⭐

Description:
Mama Bird is sad today. A little egg she was keeping warm has broken. With tenderness and
compassion, her son, Gabriel, helps comfort her.

A thoughtful picture book that explores the theme of miscarriage, using a subtle metaphor. It provides families who are living a similar experience a resource to talk about grief and loss with young children.
🐦MY REVIEW 🐦
Mama Bird Lost an Egg” is a very sweet but sad picture book. I have never saw a kids picture book for this age range talking about this subject. When I saw and requested this story I didn't realize it was talking about miscarriage. I read this story to my 2 granddaughters age 1 and 2 and my 5 year old daughter. None of them
actually grasp the concept of this story. The pictures are simple , bright and beautiful. All of the girls loved them and loved following them on their adventure. My 5 year old cried because the egg fell to the ground and " baby bird " died. 2 days later she is still talking about and sad about the baby bird . This is just not a book I recommend nor will I read it to them again. We prefer happier books. Especially for children this age.
Many thanks to the Publisher , the Author , and NetGalley for a ARC copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. I was not required to write a positive review nor was I compensated in any other way. All opinions I have expressed are my own or those of my family.
#MamaBirdLostAnEgg #NetGalley

I originally requested this book for my daughter because it was about a momma and baby bird but didn't realize the serious subject matter at first so it hit a little too close to home for me. It wasn't a bad book and would be very helpful in this specific scenario but it just wasn't for me.

I can see why this was written (to help talk about miscarriages with kids) - and that's important. But the story underwhelmed me, nonetheless. It's oversimplified and I hoped for better.

Illustrations are beautiful, as is the sentiment. I felt like the narration was too mature for the audience.

Gabriel Swallow is used to his mum cheering up when he is sad, but today his mum is the unhappy one. Looking forward to being a big brother, Gabriel learns that the egg his mum was nurturing has fallen from the nest and broken. She is heartbroken and he has a plan to soothe her.

This book does something I’ve not seen before. Explaining miscarriage to young children in a touching and accessible way, the pictures show the journey of the birds from sadness to comfort in each other. With its sensitive explanation, this book could be used with young children to explain the loss of an unborn baby

Such an unusual storyline, but brilliant at the same time. This book opens up the door to talk about death and empathy but in a gentle way.

Moma bird had been guarding her egg, and Gabriel is excited to become a big brother, but a tragic accident cracks the egg and it is lost. Garbriel helps to cheer his Moma up by showing her all the wonderful things that surround them. Things that they should be thankful for. They work through their sadness together.

Beautifully written with equally beautiful art.

Thank you to Netgalley for the advanced reader's copy in exchange for an honest review.
#MamaBirdLostAnEgg #NetGalley

At one time in my life I thought that writing a children's book was really easy; and I didn't understand why everyone didn't just do it. Over the years I've come to realize that it's actually quite difficult to modify a complex topic down to simple phrasing and illustrations that a child will understand and be engaged by.
The illustrations in Mama Bird Lost an Egg are fairly basic. Nothing too over the top; but they suit the subject matter well enough. However the accompanied text is another story. I feel Evelyne Fournier makes a number of mistakes in her representation of a miscarriage.
They are as follows:
1) The description of the egg falling from the nest sounds like Mama Bird was responsible. In most instances miscarriages happen in uncontrollable situations. I certainly don't want to imply to a child that their Mother might be responsible for loosing the egg/baby.
2) Where's Daddy Bird? It seems odd that you have an egg that clearly takes two to fertilize and grow but only one parent present. Is this a story also about an absent parent? Or other fertility options? Even if they had shown Daddy Bird at just the very end and beginning it would have been an improvement.
3) The book doesn't explicitly say that the egg is destroyed or lost. It merely says the egg fell and the next page has our child bird sad and "understands that there won't be a new chick after all." I think a lot better can be done to be more explicit about loosing the egg. Would it be do bad to use the word died; even if just once?
4) Somehow it is the child birds responsibility to make Mama Bird happy because when they are sad Mama Bird helps them. Okay I get where we want to express that there is sadness for the adults involved. But couldn't it be done in a way where the child bird helps Mama enjoy nature but both say how sad they are still? It's like a day out flying makes everything all better. If only grief was that simple.

As a woman who cannot have children; and likely experienced a miscarriage (unknowingly) as a teenager, I have to say that this just didn't ring true or authentic to me. I know tough topics are difficult to express but I don't see why we can't use the words that would be used in real life. Use death or died. Use sad or grieving. Use heart-broken or devastated. There's no harm in introducing a new word or two to a child in order to help them express their own grief and sadness.

I'd love to see more books about miscarriage (for any age group). It would be good to see miscarriage be more widely discussed (as well as infertility or difficulties with fertility) as these are topics that I believe are hidden in our society. We should normalize anything that happens to approximately 30% of women! But let's do it in a way where Mama isn't responsible, doesn't get better in an instant and doesn't make a child responsible for anything. I would have preferred for Mama to tell the child bird that she loves them and thank them for helping her feel a little better; but also emphasize that it's okay to be sad for a little while. Maybe add a reference to another egg being brought forth or how Mama is happy to have child bird every day. This would feel a little more suitable in my mind.

Please note: I received an eARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. This is an honest and unbiased review.

I was excited to see this book on NetGalley because I think it’s so important for parents to have a resource to address the difficult subject of miscarriage with their children—especially since parents are facing deep and painful emotions in the midst of it themselves. Unfortunately though, this book didn’t quite live up to my excitement. While I think it’s important for kids to know that they can try to comfort their mothers in the midst of pregnancy loss, it might also be helpful for them to know that it might be a while before mom is “back to normal.” This book could have been a good opportunity to teach children how to grieve well together as a family, but I think it kind of missed the mark there. Adding a little more length to the book might have been helpful. And while the illustrations were beautiful, the emotions of Gabriel and his mother weren’t captured on the faces of the birds, and I think the book would have been more poignant with more emotion shown visually.

I realize a lot of this feedback is preference-based. The book itself is touching and well-written, with lovely illustrations. I just wish more had been done with the story, as I don’t think I would use the book with my children if I was trying to help them process a pregnancy loss.

I received an advance copy of this book from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for my honest review.

This is a beautifully illustrated picture book about a swallow whose mother is sad because the egg she's been keeping warm has fallen to the ground and broken. It's a clear metaphor for miscarriage, as it says that he was looking forward to being a big brother. He cheers her up by taking her flying around and she tells him that nobody else can cheer her up like he can.

While it's admirable to write a children's book about miscarriage, I'm not sure how comforting this one would be for children since the takeaway seems to be that it's the child's responsibility to make his mother happy again. I don't think mothers who have just lost a baby will get much comfort from reading it to their kids, and it doesn't really provide tools or peace about it all.

As a mother who suffered a dozen miscarriages before having my children, I am glad to see the subject covered in a book for children. I think the final message could use a little work though. I don't know how much comfort this will provide, but it may also serve as a good read-aloud in general to help explain the topic to children or simply to gently expose them to a common experience for families.

I read a temporary digital ARC of this book for the purpose of review.

This was a beautifully illustrated book. The pictures were great and my daughter loved them. I feel like this book is meant to help a child deal with the loss of a sibling or to understand that the mom will be sad, however, mama bird was only sad right at the beginning and it seemed that flying around fixed that.

I didn't quite feel that this book got the meanong across it meant to.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I'm not sure what I was thinking when I saw this title, but not something this sad. Short and sweet with a ending that makes you want to "awwwww" in unison. The love of children for their parents is absolutely heartwarming.
#mamabirdlostanegg #netgalley

As someone who has had to have this difficult conversation with my children, I was so excited to see a picture book address miscarriage that families can read together and discuss. I think the illustrations are beautiful and the book is necessary but I don’t like the story or the message. The young son is able to cheer up his mother with one flight, she is able to see the silver lining and look forward to the future, and she is able to smile for her son immediately after her egg was lost. That isn’t how it works and it gives kids a false impression that it’s up to them to cheer up their mother, and that their mother will get over it and move forward quickly. They don’t. This is a false story and I would not read this with my kids.

Saving the illustrations though, I hope the author can take it back to the drawing board and be more realistic. The mother will move on, she loves her son, but she will be sad and it’s ok for them to be sad together and it’s ok to keep living. And it’s not the responsibility of the son to cheer up mom, it’s only his responsibility to be present and be understanding and to feel whatever he needs to feel as long as he needs to feel it. Then it would be a perfect book I’d buy for myself and my patrons.

Mama Bird Lost An Egg is a beautiful book which focuses on miscarriage and how it makes the mother and child feel. I think it is written in a lovely way which is easy for children to understand and by seeing the son help his mother through the grief is beautiful. The illustrations are gorgeous and are perfect for the emotions being shown and are not too busy or distracting so it keeps most of the focus on the story which is brilliant, This is a brilliant book to help children understand a difficult and confusing topic for them.

This book tells a story in which a little bird family experiences something subtly reminiscent of a miscarriage in a human family. A mama bird is mourning the loss of an egg growing a baby chick inside. The egg fell a long distance from a collapsed nest. The mama bird has a young son, Gabriel, that is saddened by this news. He was very much looking forward to being a big brother. Gabriel doesn’t like seeing his mother so sad and does all he can to cheer her up, and he does. Both birds find healing in each other and the beauty of nature.

“Mama Bird Lost an Egg” is a sad, educational, and inspirational little picture book. This book covers a difficult topic to discuss, however I find value in it because I believe it can help teach young children to have compassion and hope, especially when dealing with loss. The illustrations in this book are beautiful and sweet. “Mama Bird Lost an Egg” is geared toward the 3-6 year age range.

As a person who has suffered miscarriage I was interested in this book. I loved the pictures and descriptions. However is probably not for the really young children as too complex. But on the whole a lovely book.