Roads to Family:
All the ways we come to be

Illustrations by the talented Mel Latthitham

Nonfiction, Age: 11-18, Grade: 6-12, 144 Pages, ISBN-13: 9781728424545, ISBN-10: 1728424542, Lerner Publishing Group/Twenty-First Century Books (Tm)

What it says

A no-stone-left-unturned explanation about all the ways humans reproduce and FORM family.

Written for youth, families and classrooms, each chapter is packed with real-life stories and informative illustrations that explain the fascinating science of assisted and unassisted reproduction - sex, insemination, IVF, donor conception, and surrogacy. The book also delves into and celebrates diverse family structures and explores the complexity of what it means to create, find, and be family.  We hope that each and every readers finds themselves on these pages and knows that there are oh-so-many ways we come to be in this world, and come to be part of our families.

Where to Buy

Hardcover and Ebooks available. Softcover coming Summer 2024

A local, independent bookstore, Wallace Books

Amazon Lerner Powell's Bookshop.org Barnes & Noble

How to Change the World

Ask your local library to order a copy - so Roads to Family is available to anyone and everyone!

Review at Amazon and Goodreads

Spread the word. Media kit below.
#roadstofamily, @roadstofamily

Author Events

Learn! Resources for all ages

Free illustrations, educator guides, discussion starters

What People are Saying

• "Rachel Ginocchio's Roads to Family: All the Ways We Come to Be creates a beautiful tapestry of families around the world. With rich personal stories, clear explanations and incredibly helpful illustrations, readers will be delighted and amazed at the diversity of families and come to better understand and appreciate how parents and kids come to be in families together. This is a must-read for everyone who is part of a family." —Nora Gelperin, Division Director, Sex Education and Training Team, Advocates for Youth 

• “Roads to Family is a terrific book for humans of all ages to learn about the different ways families are created. By including stories from nearly every kind of family, this book expands the idea of family beyond typical clinical explanations and is a celebration of diversity.” — Amy Lang, MA, speaker, author, podcaster and founder of Birds & Bees & Kids.“Roads to Family: All the Ways

• We Come to Be by Rachel HS Ginocchio - this book is all about reproduction and the many ways babies come to be. It's comprehensive, inclusive of the diverse medical and societal methods people use, including in-virto fertilization, surrogacy, adoption, and more. This book is thorough, medically accurate, yet not overwhelming. It also incorporates diagrams and stories from diverse families to support the learning. Great for tweens, teens, and adults. – Melissa Pintor Carnagey, Founder and lead educator of Sex Positive Families

• "I hope the honest and heartfelt stories in this informative book empower donor conceived readers to own their experience and continue to define their family on their own terms." — Erin Jackson, Founder, We Are Donor Conceived 

• “I adore this book and I'd like it to be required reading for people. My family is built by adoption and I am always interested in the many ways of building a family. This book goes in and describes the several ways there are and then also shares stories of families that were built that way! It was fascinating.” – Keely P, Reviewer

• “Because a typical birds-and-the-bees discussion doesn't cover the ways many families form, Ginocchio introduces various medical and societal methods used today to create a family unit. . . Within each chapter, Ginocchio tells engaging, lengthy stories, based on interviews, of several racially and ethnically diverse parents, from same-sex relationships to individuals who wanted to be parents to heterosexual couples struggling with infertility, and how they brought children into their lives. She’s careful to approach each method of family creation as a range of possibilities rather than a single story. . . Supplemental facts and figures as well as enlightening graphics enhance this much-needed and inclusive resource.” — Angela Leeper, Booklist starred review

• “The book opens with a reassuring introduction reminding readers that human reproduction takes many different forms, and each one is valid. . . The book features real-life stories to make the content more accessible, but even explanations that involve complex topics such as DNA or the details of IVF are written in clear language that is easy to understand. . . The book is nuanced, bringing to the forefront the validity of all families along with answers to the questions young people might have about themselves and others. The attractive color diagrams and simple but engaging illustrations elevate and enhance the text.” —Kirkus Review

 Media Kit

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• “Roads to Family: All the ways we come to be” is a great resource for teens and their families. It goes beyond the basics of human reproduction, to explain all of modern human reproduction and family formation! Purchase wherever books are sold and/or ask your local library to order it.

• Check out what Kirkus Reviews is saying about “Roads to Family: All the ways we come to be.” “A rich and resourceful guide . . .The book is nuanced, bringing to the forefront the validity of all families along with answers to the questions young people might have about themselves and others.” This comprehensive resource for middle and high schoolers about all the ways humans reproduce and form family can be purchased wherever books are sold and/or ask your local library to order it.

• Ever want to explain, really explain, human reproduction in a way that’s interesting and inclusive of all types of families? “Roads to Family: All the ways we come to be” is a newly published book that does just that. It goes into all forms of human reproduction (sex, IVF, donor conception, surrogacy, etc.) to help every kid know how they got here and how they became part of their family. Purchase wherever books are sold and/or ask your local library to order it.

• “Roads to Family: All the ways we come to be” is a brand new resource for families that want to explain how insemination, IVF, donor conception and surrogacy works to create humans and grow families. It uses real-life stories and colorful illustrations to spark curiosity and answer questions. Purchase wherever books are sold and/or ask your local library to order it.

• Ever wonder how frozen sperm, donated egg, and adopted embryos work to create a new human being? “Roads to Family: all the ways we come to be” explains it all, plus, the book dives deep into just what it means to create, find, and be family. Purchase wherever books are sold and/or ask your local library to order it.

• It isn’t just a mom and dad having babies anymore. It’s moms and dads needing help, It’s moms together, dads together, and single parents as well. Pick up a copy of “Roads to Family: All the ways we come to be” to learn about the fascinating science of human reproduction - and how modern medicine helps all families come to be. Purchase wherever books are sold and/or ask your local library to order it.

• With 8 million babies worldwide conceived with in vitro-fertilization, isn’t it time to update how we explain where babies come from?  “Roads to Family: All the ways we come to be” does just that. Through informative illustrations and personal narratives, this resource explains how all children and families come to be. Purchase wherever books are sold and/or ask your local library to order it.