Happy Father’s Day or Fathers’ Day to all the queer dads, father figures, and anyone else who claims this day as their own. Celebrate with these picture books from 2026, five of which feature queer dads and one that doesn’t, exactly, but may still have a strong appeal for some queer dad families.
Click links or images for full reviews, and visit my Database of LGBTQ Family Books for more queer-dad tales from previous years! They make great reading at any time of year!
Because of Dads, by K.E. Lewis, illustrated by Maithili Joshi (Roaring Brook): This joyous book celebrates all of the things that dads do for their kids in daily life, from cooking to playing to instilling confidence. Throughout the book, we see a diversity of dads, of different racial/ethnic identities (and in multiracial families), physical abilities (four use wheelchairs), and gender expressions (several have long-ish hair). Two-dad families are among them, including on the final, emphatic spread.
One parent, too, next to the text, “Because that’s a dad,” has makeup, painted nails, and earrings; I’m choosing to read her as a trans woman who still goes by “dad” to her kids, as some do. Author K.E. Lewis has said that “This book is a universal song for all significant male adults in a young readers life who are fathers or assume dad-like roles and responsibilities,” so the character could also be seen as a cis woman who feels more like a dad. (And yes, the character could be a drag queen who is a dad, too, but her casual hoodie and the homey setting make me think that wasn’t the intent.) Either way, her inclusion is a nice reminder of the many ways that sex, gender, and parental roles and titles can mix and match. A lively ode to a great variety of dads and father figures.
The Perfect Match, by Chris Becker, illustrated by Dan Taylor (Nosy Crow): In this queer take on Cinderella, Jack loves when his dad tells him the bedtime story about Leo and the royal soccer match (which is in fact the story of how his two fathers fell in love). This isn’t the first queer picture book take on Cinderella (search for “Cinderella” in my database for others), but it’s a fun new twist on the tale, also giving us a glimpse of the royal couple’s family life years after the more famous events.
I also appreciate that the villains here are not the traditional step-relatives, but simply siblings. (Not that being bullied by siblings is any better than by step-siblings, but it’s best not to always make step-siblings the bad ones; many families include loving and loved step-relatives.) All told, this is bound to be a storytime winner.
The Marvelous Doctors for Magical Creatures, by Jodie Lancet-Grant, illustrated by Lydia Corry (Crocodile): In this frolicsome tale about being true to oneself, Ava’s dads heal all types of magical creatures in their small town, “From dragons with sore throats to fairies with broken wings.” Ava loves helping them do so. When her dads can’t figure out what is causing unicorn Glitterbug’s tummy ache, Ava observes the creature for a while and concludes that Glitterbug doesn’t like the same things as the other unicorns. Trying to fit in was making her stomach hurt.
There’s more than one way to be a unicorn, her Papa observes, and Daddy agrees, noting that they themselves are not like other doctors. The lesson here is clear, but engagingly told. The fact that Ava has two dads is incidental to the story; Glitterbug’s search for self isn’t about an LGBTQ identity per se, but about being different in terms of interests and personality type. Nevertheless, LGBTQ young people and those with LGBTQ parents are among the many who may find resonance with this tale, although its appeal is far broader. (First published in the U.K. in 2022.)
Proud Dog, by Sharon Davey (Penguin Workshop): Dorothy, a dalmatian, “was proud of her two dads.” She helps them learn about long walks, doggy bathtimes, and splendid dinner parties. Life is good—until her dads bring home a “noisy, floppy, screechy, smelly baby!” Dorothy’s life is upended as the baby interrupts the family’s former routines, bringing chaos (and a lot of smelly accidents) to the home. Can they all learn to get along?
This is a sweet story about a growing family, delightfully told and charmingly illustrated. It’s not “about” the dads’ queerness, but includes a nice nod to LGBTQ culture. To that extent, I recommend it. It is, however, the fourth book in recent years to show a same-sex couple getting a new baby, told from the perspective of the family’s aggrieved animal. (See full review for details.) We still need more picture books about human families with LGBTQ parents told from the perspective of a human child getting a new sibling. While a few books in recent years have started to address that (see the Siblings (New) tag in my Database and look for ones that don’t have animals on the cover), there are many more such tales to be told. That doesn’t take away from the fun of the books told from animal perspectives, which are all adorable, but I hope authors and publishers consider new directions going forward.
The Fabric of Us, by Aditi Anand (Candlewick): A little girl and one of her dads find healing in the wake of the other dad’s death in this moving and compassionate story. This may not seem like a book for Father’s Day, but families who have lost a father may find some healing in it, during the holiday or at any time.
Hindi script on some of the collage images, particularly in the marketplace, set the story in India, although the message of this gorgeous and poignant book is universal.
The Bear Fairy, by Paul Coccia, illustrated by Fred Blunt (Tundra): The titular fairy isn’t a father per se, but families with gay bear fathers may find special resonance in this tale. In it, a boy named Spencer wants to catch a fairy, even though his friend Mariah says they’re for “beautiful little girls” like her. He’s surprised, however, when the fairy he finally catches is a “bear fairy” with fur and a beard as well as a pink dress and fairy wings.
When Mariah sees him, it’s clear she has a very limited view of what fairies should be like—beautiful, fancy, and long-legged, not pudgy and hairy. “He is the worst fairy I’ve ever seen,” she opines. Spencer stands up for the bear fairy, insisting that he is beautiful, cuddly, and “perfect the way he is.” He and the bear fairy continue to play happily together in the park—and a final scene wordlessly indicates that Mariah just might now be trying to catch a bear fairy of her own.
The story lightheartedly offers a lesson about acceptance and standing up for oneself and one’s friends (and family, if we wish to read the fairy that way), making it a recommended story that should particularly (but not exclusively) be appreciated by families with one or more bear dads.