BB's Big Adventure

Anne Marie Williams reviews a new board book that tells the story of a baby girl while she's still in the womb.

BB's Big Adventure

By Laura Cunliffe; illustrated by David Janssen

Published by Good & True Media

Children’s board book BB’s Big Adventure, written by Laura Cunliffe and published by Good & True Media, is a tender telling of the adventures of baby girl “BB” while she’s still in the womb. BB and her mom enjoy ice cream, swing with her big brothers at the park, swim in the ocean, travel by car, train, and plane, and more, all en route to her biggest adventure yet: birth!

A Calming, Thoughtful Read

There’s lots to like about BB’s Big Adventure. Unlike many children’s books on the shelves at the supermarket, the color scheme isn’t overwhelming for young eyes, and this in turn allows the eyes and mind to settle on the details of each thoughtfully illustrated page. Every time I read the book to my 2- and 4-year-olds, I noticed something new, and they did, too. We found it a calming read.

I appreciated that Cunliffe’s book snuck veggies in with the main course, so to speak, as the story cleverly incorporated various fetal development milestones (all listed at the back of the book), like baby’s ability to taste in the womb at week 14 (the ice cream page), and to hiccup by week 19 (the airplane page).

One more feature of BB’s Big Adventure will resonate with many CatholicMom.com readers. As my hairstylist explained to me last week, when she visits her local library, none of the featured books in the children’s section feature families that look like hers: mom, dad, children. BB’s Big Adventure, on the other hand, highlights the simple, quiet beauty and strength of a mother and father’s love for each other, and the natural outflowing of that love on the whole family.

There are only two small notes I offer to readers by way of a head’s up. Firstly, I was confused as to why BB (and her mother’s belly) didn’t seem to get bigger as the story progressed. I understand that at week 14 or week 19 (see examples above), a mother wouldn’t be visibly heavily pregnant, but the lack of any obvious change throughout the whole book puzzled me and, I suspect, might perplex little readers, too. Since the book incorporated developmental milestones, I’m unsure why it didn’t show a progression of baby’s size and mom’s belly size and shape.

Finally, and BB’s Big Adventure is not unique in this, the cost will be higher than The Very Hungry Caterpillar and other board books on the shelves of your nearest Target. BB’s Big Adventure is somewhat comparable in price to other board books I saw on the Ignatius Press website, for instance, but young families may find the cost steep, especially knowing that a well-loved book is bound to soon bear teeth marks and other signs of tender loving aggression.

Of course, we want to encourage up-and-coming authors, especially those who promote positive family values, and we know that publishing costs are not the same as for established bestselling writers writing for major imprints. In our family, when there’s a significant cost difference between a secular product and a religious one, we count that difference as part of our tithe for the month. Maybe other readers will find this helpful, too.

Ask for BB's Big Adventure at your local Catholic bookseller, or order online from Amazon.com or the publisher, Good & True Media.

Special offers are available from the publisher!

1) Any customer who orders 3 or more copies from the publisher, Good & True Media, gets free shipping.

2) Specific to CatholicMom.com readers, use the promo code CATHOLICMOM25 for 25% off any order of 5 books or more (a great incentive to stock up for birthdays, baby showers, gender reveals, and so on).

These offers never expire.

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Copyright 2026 Anne Marie Miller
Images: Canva; interior book image via Amazon.com