Three LGBTQ-inclusive picture books out today explore a range of emotions, from warm family times with diverse families, to coping with grief after the death of a pet, to joy and self-confidence with a dash of romance!
Click images or titles for full reviews!
A Family Like Ours, by Alice Lee and Frank Murphy, illustrated by Kayla Harren (Sleeping Bear Press), is a warm and affirming book about the many kinds of families and the ways we form and choose them. Adoptive families and families with same-gender parents are included. There are now happily many queer-inclusive picture books about family types; this book’s wide lens on both formed and chosen families and on the ways that families may change over time make it one of the best.
Fluffy and the Stars, by T’áncháy Redvers, illustrated by Roza Nozari (Orca), is a simple but thoughtfully done book about coping with grief after the death of a pet. Redvers, a Dene & Métis two-spirit writer and performer, gives us a nonbinary protagonist (and one who could also be read as indigenous) without making the story “about” those identities. The message is universal even as the book offers important representation.
Cinderella and a Mouse Called Fred, by Deborah Hopkinson, illustrated by Paul O. Zelinsky (Anne Schwartz Books), is a fun and fresh take on Cinderella that reimagines many aspects of the classic tale, including the gender of the person Cinderella falls in love with. The one thing I don’t like is that the stepmother and stepsisters are still portrayed as “wicked.” Stepfamilies deserve better than this, and always have (including the many queer ones). I don’t really blame Hopkinson for keeping a few aspects of the original story—but I hope a future retelling rethinks this part of the tale, too! Nevertheless, young readers will appreciate Ella’s agency and confidence and Fred’s adorable, steady companionship.
