Hetty the Hen Who Couldn't Lay

Hetty the Hen Who Couldn’t Lay is a beautiful book about family and a mother’s love. I enjoyed the rhyming of the book and appreciated the tempo. I would absolutely recommend this book to any educator or parent.

Hetty couldn’t lay an egg.
Yes, I know we get this from the title. If any of you are owners of flocks of chickens we also know there are inaccuracies with this and a couple things in the story, but that’s not the point. This is fiction. Fiction is whatever you can make with it. Fiction that is mirroring a very real subject thanks to advancing science. This is for that child, the child that came about thanks to medical advancements. The mother that CAN be, because of medical advancements. A very cute and short rhyming story with colorful illustrations to guide you along. The seed of an idea for that tiny child filled with huge questions as they learn about their world.

Hetty the Hen Who Couldn't Lay is a really sweet story about a hen that can't lay eggs and her sister that helps her. I liked the easy to read words and the illustrations were nice! I liked the lesson of helping others.

This is a very sweet book about a chicken who can't seem to lay an egg. She gets all sorts of advice from her family, but nothing seems to work. Finally her younger sister kindly shares an egg with Hetty. A nice book to help discuss infertility.

I received an arc of this title from NetGalley for an honest review. Hetty the Hen tries everything to lay an egg, but nothing helps. She wants just one, so she can have a chick of her own. Her lovely sister gives her one of hers, and Hetty gets what she wishes for.

Poor Hetty! She just wants to lay an egg! The other animals want to see her happy. She wasn’t even overly selfish; she just wanted to have one chick. Cute story for kids.

A sweet story about what the importance of becoming a parents can truly mean to someone. This book would be a great way to introduce the topic of IVF or even adoption with small children.

This sweet book tells the story of a hen who can't lay eggs. She is very sad and worried that she will never be able to have chicks of her own, until her friends give her an egg to care for. Finally, Hetty can be the parent she has always wanted to be. With beautiful pictures and a large, accessible font, this book tells the story of adoption and surrogacy in a way that young children will understand. This idea of parents being anyone who cares for a child is a concept that children can understand from a young age, but that may not be something they have been exposed to. This book would be great for introducing the concept of fostering or adopting to young children or just normalizing a variety of different types of families. I would highly recommend this book to parents and teachers of children in the age 4-8 range. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book!

Ahhh I fell in love with Hetty when I first set eyes on her and I felt such empathy for her. The sweet little hen is unable to lay eggs like her sister hens. She is sad and wants so much to produce eggs of her own. Hetty isn't greedy desiring a flock or a clutch... she only longs for one chick to love and to cherish. Unfortunately each day becomes more disappointing and her nest remains empty. Whatever can she do to have her dream fulfilled? She feels like a failure and wonders why her?

Her loving younger sister, seeing the anguish that Hetty is suffering, offers to give her one of her eggs. At first Hetty is reluctant but soon comes to the realization that even adopting an egg can be fulfilling and will give her a chance at parenting a beautiful baby chick. She accepts the kind offer and her world becomes transformed into a happy one. Hetty and her baby chick Hatty are a match made in heaven.

The story is based on the real-life experience of the author in hopes that a light will shine on the topic of egg donation, IVF, foster care, and adoption. The illustrations are perfect and enrich the storyline greatly. The book's powerful and positive message will spark conversations on these subjects. I love the book and highly recommend it to any parent or teacher.

A tender tale of the love and sacrifice between sisters, based on the author's real-life experience. After a lifetime of trying to lay an egg, following the advice of all the other prolific hens in the flock, Hetty is given the chance to be a mother when her sister gives an egg of her own.

At the end of the book, when I read the author's note of how they had also received an egg donation from their sister, and how their daughter connected with the book, I cried a little bit. This is such a great lead-in to talking with kids about fertility issues (if they perhaps can never have a sibling or cousin), as well as some basic reproduction.

These chickens have the chubbiest cheeks I've ever seen. Williamson gave them a remarkable amount of detail, given the watercolor medium. Not individual feathers, but there's a definite fuzziness there. The adult chickens aren't so much cute as "matronly," which fits well with the books theme.

Advanced reivew copy provided by the publisher.

I received an advance reader copy of this book to read in exchange for an honest review via netgalley and the publishers.

Hetty the Hen who Couldn't Lay is a beautifully told, rhyming picture book for children about Hetty who longs for a chick of her own. But no matter what she does or tries at the recommendations of her friends and siblings, an egg just won't come. Hetty is saddened by this and it's all she can think about. One night her sister kindly gives Hetty one of her own eggs to have as her own and Hetty finally becomes a mother to a beautiful little chick at long last.
This book is so beautiful and teaches children about not giving up hope and kindness as well as sharing. But the book can also be introduced for children as a discussion opener about fertility and adoption/surrogacy/IVF too.

This was a cute book about being patient and helping a friend or a sister out. It was cute, but I don’t think it is a fit for my school library.

This is a wonderful little book. It could be an allegory for adoption, but in actually is an allegory for egg donation like what happened to the author. The author wrote this as a way to help her child see that she is precious even though mom had to have some help getting a chick. Most stories like this focus on the child understanding they are wanted and loved, but this one looks at the parents struggles and how sometimes they need a little help. This was a wonderful story; it has a cadence and rhymes well. The illustrations are eye catching and capture the heart of the story. Overall, this is an excellent addition to any library.

Poor Hetty and her sisters are very close and full of personality, but, unlike her sisters, Hetty cannot lay eggs. Desperate to have a beloved chick of her own. While the story in itself, from a child’s perspective speaks to loneliness, kindness, and sometimes wanting things desperately that seem forever out of our reach, the backstory behind this one is equally inspiring. Written by a mother who was originally told at a young age that she would never be able to have children, this one speaks powerfully to both children and adults.

The illustrations in this book are really adorable and so well-done! I think kids of all ages will definitely like this book and the cute little story.

Oh,my heart😭🥰🤍 this is such a precious book. A great way for a parent to explain how she needed a little help get her bebe chick🥺 too cute