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Home › Articles › Breastfeeding Advocacy › Read All About It!

Read All About It!

Positive Breastfeeding Images in Children's Literature: an Interview with Author Mary Olsen

By Shel Franco

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My 6-year-old gave his 3-year-old brother a lesson in breastfeeding education. The other night, I overheard them discussing an illustration in one of their storybooks.

"What's that mommy doing?" asked my middle child.

"Something we don't do," said my oldest.

The mommy in question was bottle-feeding, and I had to chuckle at my oldest son's reprimanding tone. While my sons were weaned before they could retain much of what nursing was about, they have watched and learned during the nursing tenure of their sister, an experience that I am glad to give them, knowing all too well that seeing a mom breastfeed is still not the cultural norm.

Have you ever counted the number of bottle-fed babies portrayed in your child's books? The lack of nursing mothers in children's literature can be depressing. Fortunately, people like Mary Olsen, author of I'm Made of Mama's Milk, are willing to jump through hoops to change that.

SF: Do you think the image of breastfeeding is lacking in children's literature?
MO: Yes, definitely. I remember when my daughter was a baby, searching all over for children's books to buy for her about her favorite subject – breastfeeding. I found hardly a handful, none of which contained true-to-life life images of breastfeeding, which was what I was most interested in presenting to her. I didn't understand this. I remember thinking, "Is it just me, or aren't mothers breastfeeding their children these days? This is the year 2000. Where are all the breastfeeding board books for the nurslings?" Everywhere I went I saw mothers nursing their babies and toddlers, yet it seemed like every other book written for young children that I picked up featured babies drinking from bottles, as if bottle-feeding was the norm. It felt very strange to be breastfeeding my baby in the new millennium with what seemed like a 1950s' selection of children's books to choose from.

SF: Why do you think it is important to feature breastfeeding in children's literature?

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