The bird world includes many kinds of family diversity, and this warm and gentle book shares a number of examples with young readers, encouraging them to see reflections of their own families. For example, “Your family may be like a Blue Jay family … Mom and dad both work hard to look after their chicks.” Or “You could have a family like a Laysan Albatross. Many Laysan Albatross babies have two moms.” We also see examples of birds with solo mom or solo dad families, two-dad and two-mom families, adoptive families, extended families working in groups to raise young, and even birds who grow up without parents, but with the help of peers.
Although every person and every bird’s family may look different and love each other differently, author Fern Wexler concludes, “families of a feather love together, and everyone deserves to be loved.”
While queer-inclusive books about family diversity are happily more common these days, I love that this one connects such diversity to the natural world. I am generally less enthused by some other books that use anthropomorphic animals when really discussing purely human feelings and behaviors, or that use animals as an always-imperfect metaphor for humans; see Kyle Lukoff’s excellent essay “Trans Kids Deserve to See Themselves in Children’s Books” for more on that topic. But a fact-based book that simply highlights family structures among animals as a way of both teaching kids about those animals and showing them that family diversity is a natural thing? I’m here for that.
Several other books have done similarly (Love in the Wild; It’s a Wild World; Meet My Family!, and the classic And Tango Makes Three); Families of a Feather distinguishes itself by taking a straightforward nonfiction approach rather than embedding the facts in a fictionalized story, dialogue, or impressionistic poem. (There’s a place for all of those approaches, though, depending on the reader’s age and tastes.)
Kelsey Buzzell’s illustrations are realistic enough to convey each species’ characteristics, but with expressive eyes that add a touch of whimsical personality. Backmatter includes “More About the Bird Families,” with an additional paragraph on each, and two suggested websites for further information.
A highly recommended book for home, school, and library shelves.
