5 Reasons You Need to Read ‘My Body I Decide’ With Your Child

Picture this: your five-year-old comes home from a birthday party and says, "An uncle wanted a hug and I didn't want to give one, but I did anyway." What do you say next? As a parent, we freeze, because nobody ever had this conversation with us, so we don’t know how to have it with our children. 

That's exactly what My Body I Decide is for.

1. It teaches kids ownership

Children are constantly told to hug uncle, or let a stranger pinch their cheeks. It feels harmless, even affectionate. For our children it can translate to: other people's comfort matters more than yours.

My Body I Decide flips that. It tells children, in language they can understand, that nobody, not a friend, not a family member, not a trusted adult, has the right to touch them in a way that feels wrong. Instead of scaring a child, it can be one of the most freeing things they can hear.

2. It helps kids put words to that "uh-oh" feeling

You know that feeling kids get when something's off, the stomach drop, the stiffening up, the sudden quiet? Children feel it all the time, but most of them have no idea what it means.

This book helps children recognise what these feelings mean and understand that those feelings are actually useful signals. Think of it like teaching a child to read a weather forecast. Once they know what the clouds mean, they're not caught off guard by the rain.

3. It makes consent completely normal

"Consent" sounds like a word for courtrooms and college campuses. But in practice, it's just this: your yes matters, your no matters, and so does everyone else's.

This book introduces that idea through situations every child will recognise. Trading snacks at lunch. Joining a game at recess. Deciding whether to share a toy. When consent is woven into everyday moments instead of presented as a big serious topic, kids are able to integrate it into their life. 

4. It gives them permission to say no

We do a wonderful job teaching children to be polite, cooperative, and kind. We do a much worse job teaching them when not to be.

A child who has only ever been praised for saying yes will find it incredibly hard to say no when it counts. My Body I Decide normalises that no, makes it something brave and right rather than rude and defiant. It gives parents a natural opening to say, "In our house, your no is always heard." It helps reinforce awareness among children and gives them confidence. 

5. It celebrates every kind of child

Beyond safety, the book does something just as important: it shows children that bodies come in all shapes, sizes, and abilities, and that every single one deserves respect.

In a world where kids are bombarded by images of what a "normal" body looks like, from cartoon characters to social media filters, a book that says all bodies are worth celebrating is quietly radical. And children who feel good about their own bodies are more likely to trust them, which brings us right back to reason number one.

At Ocean Bloom Books, My Body I Decide is one of our most important titles, for parents who want to prepare their children for any unforeseen circumstance. 

Browse our collection and find the right book for your child right now.