The 2008 Cybil nominees are here! Never heard of them? They bill themselves as “the premier Web awards for children’s literature,” and since they’ve been around for three years now, they have some claim to the title. The books are nominated by the public, and a panel of literary bloggers chooses the finalists. Several LGBT-themed […]
Shifting from political discussion to something more fun: let’s have a giveaway. While at BlogHer Boston Saturday, I picked up some books from Hooked on Phonics, one of the conference sponsors. The Hooked on Phonics company has been around for over 20 years now. They’ve expanded their range beyond phonics, and now offer learning aids
After refusing to rule on a case involving a sperm donor who claimed parental rights, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a second rejection this week that means good news for LGBT families.
(Here’s a longer piece on Banned Books Week I wrote for Bay Windows, October 1, 2008. Seemed a good way to end the week.) This week marks the 27th annual Banned Books Week, the American Library Association’s celebration of the freedom to read. LGBT-inclusive children’s books have long been on the ALA’s list of works
Helen and I celebrate a Banned Books Week full of fur and feathers. We discuss several LGBT-inclusive children’s books as well as an earlier work that was banned for supposedly promoting interracial marriage. We also point out the opportunity parents are missing by avoiding difficult topics with their children, and explain how we are helping
I’ve been using Wednesdays to post recommendations for books about non-traditional (or non-specific), but not necessarily LGBT families. Given that this is Banned Books Week, however, I thought I’d just offer a few more thoughts stemming from that event. Here’s an interesting fact, for example: Nearly half (43) of the books on the Radcliffe Publishing
It’s Banned Books Week once again, the American Library Association’s annual celebration of the freedom to read. Each year, the ALA tracks the books that have received an official challenge, “a formal, written complaint, filed with a library or school requesting that materials be removed because of content or appropriateness.” Judith F. Krug, director of
Here’s my next recommendation for a book about non-traditional (or non-specific), but not necessarily LGBT families. (See my philosophy behind this as well as my first recommendation here.) Mommy, Do You Love Me?, by Jeanne Willis and illustrated by Jan Fearnley (Candlewick Press, 2008), tackles the same broad theme as the publisher’s classic Guess How
It’s lesbian home improvement this week! Helen and I show you how we reorganized our garage with a few simple pieces of hardware to make things more convenient for ourselves and safe for our son. We also update viewers on our son’s transition to kindergarten and recommend two classic books with positive messages for kids
The number of children’s books featuring LGBT families is sadly low, and the number of quality ones even lower. I think the only new one in the picture book category this year was Uncle Bobby’s Wedding. This needs to change, and we need to do whatever we can to encourage both independent publishers and large
