(2) K-3 Translated by Don Bartlett. With a combination of cartoon illustrations, goofy humor, and candid information, this very Scandinavian baby-making primer approaches the topic with eyes wide open. The title question yields some ridiculous answers ("With dangerous chemicals? With butter, sugar, flour, and eggs?") before getting serious ("Making a baby begins with love"). After some real talk about how couples express affection ("Cuddling together naked, man and woman, woman and woman, or man and man is called having sex. It's something adult couples do because they're close and they like it"), Fiske covers the basics--conception, embryo development, pregnancy--in some depth. The journey of the sperm to the egg, for example, plays out over nine pages. Fiske includes the fact that having sex doesn't always result in a pregnancy and that some couples are unable to conceive ("We don't have any sperm"). The drawings maintain a sense of humor while introducing forthright details about intercourse: as a naked man and woman kiss, his erect penis says, "Hello!" and her vagina replies, "Come in!" This covers-off look at baby-making doesn't leave much to the imagination; those seeking an uninhibited approach to the topic will welcome this book's directness.

Reviewer: Kitty Flynn | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2021