Most parents with an adopted child from China receive a copy of Rose Lewis’ “I Love You Like Crazy Cakes.” In fact, a certain Q staffer received three copies of this New York Times best seller when she adopted her daughter. The book is based on Northwestern graduate Lewis’ adoption of her daughter Alexandra “Ming” Mae-Ming from China.
Lewis’ second children’s book, “Every Year on Your Birthday” (Little, Brown and Company), just released on May 1 and illustrated again by Jane Dyer, celebrates the different ways in which a mother and daughter mark the daughter’s first five birthdays. Lewis weaves in elements of adoption (referral picture, attaining U.S. citizenship) and Chinese culture (the Autumn Moon celebration, red envelopes for Chinese New Year).
“The moments are so fleeting [between a mother and a daughter],” Lewis said during a recent phone interview. She refers to the book’s line: ” … I think about how quickly your gurgles have turned to giggles.”
“You think back, if only I could have the moment [again] for a second, but you can’t, so you think about it,” she said.
As in “Crazy Cakes,” Lewis closes “Every Year” by referencing the adopted girl’s birth family: “Every year on your birthday, we look up at the stars and remember your Chinese family.”
A loving tribute between mother and daughter, “Every Year on Your Birthday” sells for $16.99 at Borders and major bookstores.
Read more about Rose Lewis on the adoption blog: chicagotribune.com/adoption. Rose Lewis will read and sign her two books from 5-7 p.m. Friday at the Music Institute of Chicago, 2008 Dempster St., Evanston. To attend the free event, call 847-256-3627 or e-mail [email protected]. The author will also read at 3 p.m. Saturday at the Printers Row Book Fair.