Sometimes simplest is best. This bright board book poses one question: “How do you know what someone wants to be called?”
The answer? “Ask.” The book then offers one spread for each of several pronouns, each page filled with diverse people who use that pronoun. She, he, they, her, him, them, hers, his, theirs—we see people of various gender expressions on every page, with different hair, clothing, and skin tones. The final two spreads show the people joyously gathering for a picnic as we read, “All together … us.” The people on the final spreads are also wearing buttons declaring their pronouns, many of which are neopronouns (co, ey, per, xe, ze, xe).
Chris Ayala-Kronos’ spare text is brought to life by Melita Tirado’s bold, bright illustrations. The style reminds me a little of Fiona Smyth’s illustrations in What Makes a Baby and Sex Is a Funny Word, but with a different palette and more realistic skin tones, rather than Smyth’s whimsical colors. That’s not a judgment, except insofar as I’ve always liked Smyth’s style, which is probably why I like Tirado’s, too.
This book doesn’t go into any more detail, which I think is actually a positive for a first book. Before they learn anything more about gender, young children can know that different people use different pronouns, and learn to respect that. (Maya Gonzalez and Matthew SG’s They She He Me: Free to Be! and They, She, He Easy as ABC use a similar approach.) Later, children can build on this information with books like Being You: A First Conversation About Gender and Pink, Blue, and You! Questions for Kids about Gender Stereotypes.
This is a delightful book and recommended for anyone wanting a first book to introduce the concept of pronouns.
[Don’t confuse this book with The Pronoun Book: She, He, They and Me, by Cassandra Jules Corrigan, which, while well-intentioned, has some problematic explanations, as I detail at the link.]
