Aardvarks Aalfred and Aalbert sometimes longed to be part of a pair, but each had his own life. Aalfred loved broccoli and was nocturnal; Aalbert loved cheese and was diurnal, so they never met. When a little bird notices, wordlessly, that they might do well together, it sets out to nudge them into encountering each other—by tactics like leaving a trail of broccoli or linking them together with a large ball of string. The bird is saddened when nothing works, and when Aalfred observes the sadness (without knowing its cause), he tries to help—stumbling into Aalbert’s burrow by mistake. The two find a connection. On the final page, we see them happily making cheese-covered broccoli together, while the bird looks on. Gentle humor and a judicious use of words and images make this story a charmer. While I tend to prefer books with human LGBTQ characters, who often provide more authentic representation, this book is just darn cute, and would make a nice addition to a collection that already has books with human LGBTQ characters.
(Additional observation: The hardback version is titled just Aalfred and Aalbert, but the paperback version is Aalfred and Aalbert: A Love Story. In its review, School Library Journal called the book “a lovely book about finding a new friend.” Clearly they missed the point—the original U.K. publisher’s own blurb calls the bird a “matchmaker” and says the story “will appeal to families with LGBTQ parents and family members.” The two aardvarks have obviously found aamor.)
