Skip to main content Skip to search Skip to search

Children's Fiction Death & Dying

Because I Already Loved You

by (author) Andrée-Anne Cyr

illustrated by Bérengère Delaporte

Publisher
Groundwood Books Ltd
Initial publish date
Aug 2023
Category
Death & Dying, Siblings, New Baby
  • eBook

    ISBN
    9781773069746
    Publish Date
    Aug 2023
    List Price
    $10.99
  • Hardback

    ISBN
    9781773069739
    Publish Date
    Aug 2023
    List Price
    $19.99

Add it to your shelf

Where to buy it

Recommended Age, Grade, and Reading Levels

  • Age: 3 to 6
  • Grade: p to 1

Description

I never got the chance to know you and play with you, but I think of you a lot.

A child eagerly waits for their younger sibling to be born. They help Daddy decorate the room, pick out toys with Grandma and build a sled with Grandpa. Auntie and Uncle are excited too, and the narrator helps them to pick out an exciting book and prepare a magic trick to show the baby. When Mommy and Daddy come back from the hospital, there is no baby with them — only a dark cloud of sadness.

The child doesn’t understand where the new baby is, until their parents explain that the baby died at birth. The narrator’s family explains that it’s rare, and it’s no one’s fault. Daddy and Mommy are very sad, but they also say that—little by little—they will find their smiles again. Although the child never got the chance to get to know their sibling, they have saved them a special place in their heart.

A quiet, thoughtful look at stillbirth and grief told through the eyes of a child. Includes a list of support organizations for children and families.

 

Key Text Features

Illustrations

annotated resources

 

Correlates to the Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts:

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.1.3

Describe characters, settings, and major events in a story, using key details.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.1.7

Use illustrations and details in a story to describe its characters, setting, or events.

About the authors

ANDRÉE-ANNE CYR was an early childhood educator and has a background in special education. She is a mother of three children and likes to surprise them with stories where they are the heroes. Now that her stories are published, she is all the happier that they can be read and appreciated by other children. She lives in Laval, Quebec.

Andrée-Anne Cyr's profile page

BÉRENGÈRE DELAPORTE works part time as an illustrator for a communications company. The rest of her time is spent making books. She is especially interested in anthropomorphized characters.

Bérengère Delaporte's profile page

Editorial Reviews

Because I Already Loved You is beautifully written and illustrated, filled with light and love.

Children's Literature Comprehensive Database

The succinct text clearly and honestly conveys both emotions and information in a child-friendly way. An important entry point for deeper discussion.

Kirkus Reviews

A necessary and artful picture book … Cyr’s work clearly springs from an understanding of a young child’s point of view on one of life’s largest chasms: loss.

CM: Canadian Review of Materials

Other titles by