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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (Nov. 20, 2009)
WWW JUSTOUT COM 1 * 1 2 0 . NOVEMBER 20 2009 FABULOUS FAMILY READING: Ranking the Best GLBT Books for Kids I By TAMMY STONER Over the past decade, quite a few children’s books reflecting and representing gay families have danced off the presses. We’ve waded through some of the more popular titles to compile a list of fabulous fare. These five of ferings feature gay and lesbian families and are ranked in order of their queer sensibil ity— from subdued to outrageously super! And Tango Makes Three by Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell: illustrated by Henr y Cole: pre-K to 8 gears old This first book is based on the true-life story of a zoo keeper at New York’s Central Park Zoo, who brings a boy-boy penguin couple an orphaned egg in need of parents. The couple, Roy and Silo, trade time sitting on the nest until the egg hatches and they become a family. Unlike humans, the other penguins didn’t cause a ruckus. According to the American Library Association, A nd Tango Makes Three was the most challenged book of 2006, 2007 and 2008, and the most banned book of 2009. It also received an American Library Association’s Notable Children Book Award COLUMNISTS PICK Written on the Body by Je a n e tte Winterson I have always been a reader; for most of my life my nose has been buried in a book, from horror to British Chick Lit. W hen I returned to college as an English major, much of my reading became of a required nature, but oc casionally, I am blown away by what I have the privilege to study. One of these books is an obscure novel titled Written on the Body by a lesbian writer from England, Jeanette Winterson. The story itself is not obscure; it’s a love story with the LeningtonFinaticial Building Wealth and Well Being Lenington Financial is a fee-only Registered Investment Advisory firm focused on same sex couple and non-traditional family financial planning. We provide exceptional, objective, hourly-based financial planning, retirement and investment advice regardless of net worth, income or investment assets. Member: • PridePlanncrs • Garrett Planning N etw ork • N APFA • Kin de r Institute o f Life Planning • I % for the Planet • PA B A Family Alphabet Book is a step higher on our queer sensibility scale. ABC guides kids through the alphabet with lively images of all variations of families, doing activities guided by each letter. Best yet, ABC doesn’t shy away from showing all the wonderful queer families out there, including the butch mama and the musical theater daddies. Book by Linda de Haan and Stern Nijland: 4- by Bobbie Combs: illustrated bg Desiree 8 gear olds (marriage theme) Keane and Brian Rappa: pre-K to 5 gears old King & King is the big papa on our queer sensibility scale for three reasons: 1. It was first published in Dutch (who doesn’t love the Dutch?) 2. Each page looks like Mardi Gras, with subtle ac tions to find in the back ground— a cat walking high up on streamers and a dolphin fountain spitting out a toad. 3. And, oh, the story is about two princes who marry to become King and King! O f course, this book generated protests. Four parents in Lexington even filed suit last year against their school system for keeping King & King in its curriculum. Their claim? King & King represented an unconstitutional effort to indoctrinate children into accept- ing gay marriage. The case was thrown out, with Judge Sandra Lynch (one of three on the panel) stating, “The reading by a teacher o f one book ... and even if to a young and impressionable child, does not constitute ‘indoctrination.’” Follow-up title King & King iff Family is just as fabulous. In it the newlywed kings go on their honeymoon, during which time they find a lonely orphaned girl. True to the queer sensibility, they open their hearts, adopt her and raise her as a princess. JB fi ideas into a road map of love. Written on the Body is told from the perspective o f an androgynous narrator—a narrator who is never named and whose gender identity not revealed. The narrator tells of the love for the object of his or her affection, a married woman named Louise. While telling the story, the narrator flashbacks on his or her life, giving the reader a glimpse of previous conquests, both male and female. Each love is measured by its loss. W hen Louise becomes ill, the narrator must make a decision—but is that decision the ultimate sacrifice for love or merely a running from it? Winterson has penned 18 books, includ ing a young adult novel, Tanglewreck, about time travel and alternate realities. My favorite line from Tanglewreck is one I return to often: “Leave the past in its permanent home. Don’t make that reality so strong that it tears down this one.” One way in which I determine a book’s worth is whether it stays with me long after I’ve turned the last page; Winterson’s work does this for sure. Her style is unique and entirely worth taking the time to experience, vftfi (2006) and was listed as a Nick Jr. Family Magazine Best Book of the Year (2006). And for good reason— Tango has beautiful illustra tions and a gentle, endearing story. Emma and Meesha M y Boy by Kaitlgn Considine: illustrated bg Binng Hobbs: pre-K to 5 gears old One notch above Tango on the queer sen sibility scale is this book about two moms and their daughter Emma. Emma loves to play with her cat* Meesha, dressing him up in outfits and (oops) paint ing him. W hile not as strong on story as some others on the list, this is a fun, easy read for pre-schoolers—and a great tool for teaching children how to play gently with the kitty! -*•-*- ABC-A Family Alphabet W ith a very mustached-feel, the ABC—A -#■ if:- if:- if:- The Family Book bgTodd Parr: pre-K to 7 gears old The next recommended title on our scale is The Family Book, illustrated in Todd Parr’s trademark bold shapes and colors— think Keith Haring through a kaleidoscope. W ith humor and lively art that makes kids laugh, Parr draws many different families: some with two moms; some with one dad; some that are quiet, some that are loud. As Abigail Webb, co-founder of PLO P (Pregnant Lesbians of Portland), sums up, “I t’s nice to see so many kinds of families rep resented, and not just the straight/gay setup. It takes all kinds, as Todd Parr shows us in his book.” ► iC 'll v */ 7*C 7jC 7*C 7*C King 6 King Kathryn Martini usual elements, but it is written in an unusual style. The narrator opens with a very deep question that becomes the theme for the story: “W hy is the measure of loVe loss?” The question is never really answered but rather unfolded through the book, caus ing readers to consider that ques tion and apply it to their own experiences. Winterson brilliantly captures the physi cal, mental and spiritual ways in which lust and new love are experienced. She weaves the physical science of the body with metaphysical H . 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