New LGBTQ-inclusive picture books just keep on coming! Here are some of my recent favorites that I haven’t already mentioned, including a new board book for the youngest tots.
Click links or images for full reviews, and see what else is new in my Database of LGBTQ Family Books!
Baby, You’re A Rainbow, by Sophie Beer (Dial). Author/illustrator Sophie Beer brings us another charming and delightful board book in the vein of her Love Makes a Family, this time focusing on babies and the joy (and occasional chaos) they bring to their families. The several families portrayed include a two-mom family (who could also be read as a mom and a nonbinary parent). Sweet, cheerful, and full of diverse representation, this is a highly recommended volume that should particularly appeal to families with new babies.
My Gender, My Rules, by Andy Passchier (Little Bee Books). The delightful volume, published in partnership with GLAAD, will help adults and kids start to have important conversations about gender, feelings, and understanding themselves. There’s a clear pedagogical purpose here, but the messages are kept simple for young readers and enhanced by the cheery images, as diverse people of all ages work and play in community. It’s a book of celebration as well as education. If you know Passchier’s previous work, you know how exuberant and joyful it is, and this one is no exception. It fits between their other gender-focused books in its target age range (3 to 6 years), and is a must-have for anyone seeking to discuss gender with kids of any identity.
Call Me Gray, by Andrew Larsen and Bells Larsen, illustrated by Tallulah Fontaine (Kids Can Press). Award-winning author Andrew Larsen and his grown son, musician Bells Larsen, here give us a tender story about a nonbinary child and their father, inspired by Bells’s own experience as a transgender person. The book deftly balances Gray’s changing identity against the unchanging aspects of their father’s love and their family traditions. The first-person perspective centers Gray’s experience, and the Larsens are accomplished enough not to over-explain, so that the story feels personal rather than pedagogical. Fontaine’s illustrations reflect the gentle tone of the text and the winter setting. All told, this is a standout book and highly recommended.
The Pirate Moms, by Jodie Lancet-Grant, illustrated by Lydia Corry (Crocodile Books). “Billy’s family was not what you’d call ordinary,” we learn—but it’s not because he has two moms. It’s because they love sea shanties, have a pet parrot, and prefer navigating by old maps. But when (much to Billy’s embarrassment), they chaperone his class trip to the seaside, the moms’ savvy might just save the day. Lancet-Grant cleverly avoids giving us yet another story about a kid who feels different because of having same-sex parents—we have tales aplenty like that. Instead, the parents’ queerness is not even mentioned and is probably the least interesting thing about them. At the same time, there’s a message here about finding strength in difference that kids with queer parents (or any kind of “different” family) should particularly appreciate. First published in the U.K. (2021) as The Pirate Mums.
Banana Menorah, by Lee Wind, illustrated by Karl West (Apples & Honey Press). Skylar is happy to be on vacation with Daddy and Papa, but is also looking forward to lighting a Hanukkah menorah like they do at home. There’s just one problem: no one packed any of their menorahs! Luckily, Skylar has an idea—and it’s not too much of a spoiler to say it gives the book its title. But this leads to a cascade of creativity and ultimately, a way to blend old and new traditions. The tale is a pure delight, while also echoing the traditional Hanukkah story in that it’s about finding oneself short of resources but not giving up. Wind based the book on his own childhood experience, we learn in an afterward. Backmatter also includes suggestions for how readers can safely engage in their own creative menorah explorations. Highly recommended—and likely to spark some holiday creativity.
