#LGBTQKidLit

Trans* and Gender Creative Kid Lit

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Here’s a list of books I’ve reviewed about kids who reject gender norms. Check out the reviews and commit to adding one to your personal or school library!!

I’m reviewing LGBTQ# inclusive children’s picture books at RaiseThemRighteous.

If you are an author/publisher (traditional/indie/self-published) contact me for a review and to learn more about my book project!

Jamie Is Jamie: A Book About Being Yourself and Playing Your Way

My Princess BoyFrom the Stars in the Sky to the Fish in the SeaJack (Not Jackie)

This review is part of my “Snapshots of LGBTQ Kid Lit” project. I’m working on a book, The New Queer Children’s Literature: Exploring the Principles and Politics of LGBTQ* Children’s Picture Books, which is under contract with the University Press of Mississippi. Part of my research is identifying and interpreting English-language children’s picture books with LGBTQ* content published in the US and Canada between 1979 and 2019. Follow my blog to follow my journey!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Maya Gonzalez’s The Gender Wheel (2017)

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The Gender Wheel (2017), written and illustrated by Maya Gonzalez, introduces readers to gender diversity through the concept of a “gender wheel.” Gonzalez’s images are warm and inviting. She illustrates her characters in a range of skin-tones with a variety of gender expressions.

The commendable purpose of the book is to teach children to understand gender outside of a binary model. Continue reading →

Daniel Kibblesmith’s Santa’s Husband (2017)

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Santa's HusbandSanta’s Husband (2017), written by Daniel Kibblesmith and illustrated by A P Quach, reimagines Santa and his partner as an interracial gay couple. Santa Claus, a black man, and his white partner, David, live in the North Pole, check the naughty/nice list twice, and take care of all the reindeer. The idea that some people don’t like a gay black Santa is introduced but it’s noted that people have always imagined Santa in different ways. Continue reading →

Amy Fabrikant’s When Kayla was Kyle (2013)

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When Kayla Was Kyle by Fabrikant, Amy (2013) Paperback

When Kayla was Kyle (2013), written by Amy Fabrikant and illustrated by Jennifer Levine, is a thoughtful book about an unhappy transgender child who bravely confides her gender identity to her parents and begins to transition.

At the start of the book, Kayla’s father polices her gender by pressuring her to play basketball with boys even though she is clearly uncomfortable with masculine gender expression. Although her mother is loving she does not understand what Kayla is experiencing and is unable to support her. Continue reading →

Afsaneh Moradian’s Jamie is Jamie: A Book About Being Yourself and Playing Your Way (2018)

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Jamie Is Jamie: A Book About Being Yourself and Playing Your Way

Jamie is Jamie: A Book About Being Yourself and Playing Your Way (2018), written by Afsaneh Moradian and illustrated by Maria Bogade, is the story of a non-binary child named Jamie’s first day at a new school.

Jamie has a gender ambiguous name, appearance, and choice in play. When they arrive at their new school wearing a red and white striped top with purple pants and red shoes, their brown hair cut short, their new peers end up reading their gender through their play preferences. Continue reading →

John Farrell’s Dear Child (2008)

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Dear Child (2008), written by John Farrell and illustrated by Maurie J. Manning, is a sweet and simple story about the love parents feel for their children. The narrative lyrically unfolds as a letter from a parent to a child. Diverse and inclusive images of families demonstrate the universality of parental love. Continue reading →