Happy Hanukkah, merry Christmas, and happy Kwanzaa to those celebrating any or all of the holidays this week! Posting will be light for a bit while I enjoy time with my interfaith family, though I’ll still have a couple of new pieces here and there. You can also catch me on Instagram, Facebook, Bluesky, and Threads!
Looking for LGBTQ-inclusive kids’ books about the winter holidays? Check out these picture books, plus a few middle grade titles that would also make great family read-alouds for younger children!
Looking for LGBTQ-inclusive, holiday-themed books for kids? There may not be as many as we’d like, but there might be more than you think!
Looking for LGBTQ-inclusive, holiday-themed books for kids? There may not be as many as we’d like, but there might be more than you think!
Hanukkah starts tonight, but LGBTQ parents will have to look long and hard to find even a glimpse of a family like theirs in a picture book about the holiday. One book slipped under my radar until recently, and while it still only offers a brief glance, it’s just about all we’ve got.
The end-of-year holiday season is hard for me now that my parents have passed. Thanksgiving had always been my Jewish family of origin’s time to gather. My brother and I have continued to celebrate Thanksgiving with our immediate families and his wife’s parents, but the absence of our parents makes the occasion bittersweet. I miss them, too, at Hanukkah, when we always lit a menorah and exchanged gifts. I’m finding comfort this year, however, in a new project to uncover and preserve our family history.
My family of origin always has our biggest gathering on Thanksgiving. My spouse Helen, our son, and I pretty much party from then until Helen’s birthday in early January, marking Hanukkah, Christmas, and New Year’s along the way.
Hanukkah starts this Sunday evening, which means I’m in a bit of a mood as I’m getting ready. I give to you all, therefore, a very queer rewrite of the classic Hanukkah song, “I Had a Little Dreidel.” Enjoy (and leave another verse, if you’re so inspired)!
(Originally published as my Mombian newspaper column.) It was holiday prep weekend here at my house, our annual festive mash-up of traditions.
I’ve been lighting the Hanukkah candles with my 11-year-old son this week and thinking about how we all could use a little light right now.
