Book Recommendation: Families

I popped into the library of my son’s school the other day as part of my “get to know the school” plan and because as a (perhaps not successfully) recovering academic, I am constitutionally unable to stay out of any library within a 100-yard radius. I started chatting with the libarian, and in the course of our conversation, mentioned that my partner and I had recently moved to the area with our son.

Librarians are a perspicacious bunch, let me tell you. When she showed me over to the storybook section, she pointed out one of the books on special display on top of the bookcase, Susan Kuklin’s Families. In it, children from 15 different families talk about their lives, parents, and siblings. There is a family with lesbian moms, one with gay dads, adoptive families, interracial families, first-generation Americans, families with special-needs children, and families of various religious backgrounds. Many of the families fall into more than one of these categories. Needless to say, I checked it out (along with an unrelated storybook that I’ll save for another post).

Aside from the diversity, what makes the book stand out is that the children, ages four to fourteen, directed the content, deciding what should be included in the text, where the photos should be taken, and what everyone, including the adults, would wear. Kuklin took their raw material and transformed it into a celebration of family diversity.

This is a great book for introducing diversity of all types, a beautiful book for a gift, and a useful one for educators. It’s an American Library Association 2007 Notable Children’s Book, and deserving of the award. (Kuklin is also the author of several other outstanding photo-essay books for children, including Dance! With Bill T. Jones and Hoops with Swoopes.)

Speaking of the ALA, they have designated September as Library Card Sign-Up Month. Use Families as an excuse, if you don’t have a card already.