Final Reflection

This class has definitely taught me how to look at children's books through a diverse magnifying glass. I knew that having a diverse set of books for your classroom was vital for your students, I just didn't know how to pick them. Many of the books we looked at this semester, I dove right into not really having any idea what to expect from them. I learned so much from not only reading these books, but from doing my questioning the text papers and also listening to my group members questioning the text papers. I was able to see these books through someone else's perspective which is vital when exploring diverse novels like the ones we read. I don't think I saw everything that everyone else saw, which gives me a great opportunity to see these things.

I haven't really ever had prior experience writing questioning the text papers; I am used to just plain book reports. I looked back at my first questioning the text paper compared to my last questioning the text paper and I couldn't believe the difference I saw. The first one was not in the form of a paper by any means, which means I misunderstood something, haha! But all of my questioing the text papers after that got more in depth and got more into the book, so by the time I got to the last paper, I felt like I was a pro. I really covered all the points that should be covered in a questioning the text paper.

GBLTQ Literature - Text as a Set Reflection

Texts as a Set Reflection:

When I began this final project I had my mind set on focusing on children with disabilities, mainly Down Syndrome and Autism. I quickly changed my mind when I arrived at the library to pick out my set of books to review. They were so far and few between that it just wasn’t worth it, so I decided to start my search over and look for books that focused on GLBTQ literature. The librarian had a tough time trying to help me find these books also, especially picture books of this nature. The funny thing is the reason why they were so hard to find was because they had basically been hidden in the back of the library where most people wouldn’t go to find children’s books. I found this to be so interesting, so this topic intrigued me even more. The three books that I chose for my text set to review includes, Mom and Mum are getting Married!, Daddy’s Roommate and And Tango Makes Three. All three of these picture story books were not sorted and shelved with the other picture books, they were sorted by J Fiction. Next to these picture books were more research type books on controversial subjects like GLBTQ literature. I asked the librarian why they had ‘hid’ these books in the back of the library and why they weren’t with the other picture books and she responded with, “well, the books are here for the people that need them but we understand that not everyone wants their children exposed to such literature.” I couldn’t believe what she was saying to me. Why did these books need to be hidden? They all present their characters in positive lights; they all have a good message to send to children and they are relatable. I think that children in these types of ‘non-traditional’ families need books like these to relate to. They need to realize that just because their family isn’t as traditional as their peers may be, doesn’t mean it is wrong or bad; and these books teach that exact lesson.

I was excited to see in two of these books portrayed the main characters as positive influences. It’s a change to see such a thing, especially in children’s literature. I understand that GLBTQ literature is controversial issue, but I think making it young children’s literature is even more controversial because it brings up the question of, how much do you explain without giving too much detail to confuse children but enough information to inform them. I think the main messages that all three of these stories portrayed was that diversity is out there, we are considered the melting pot and just because your family is not of the ‘traditional’ kind, doesn’t mean you have a bad family.

Many of the books I looked at that fell into the GLBTQ category were either challenged or banned because of their ‘controversial’ topics. I think this makes these books that much more interesting and intriguing to read.

GLBTQ Children's Literature Professional Resources

Professional Resources:

ALA –

• This is such a great resource when it comes to children’s books.

And Tango Makes Three –

• “And Tango Makes Three tops ALA's 2006 list of most-challenged books”
• This website discusses the American Library Association’s list of most challenged books, which includes And Tango Makes Three.
• http://proquest.umi.com.proxy1.cl.msu.edu:2047/pqdweb?index=2&did=1341633961&SrchMode=1&sid=1&Fmt=3&VInst=PROD&VType=PQD&RQT=309&VName=PQD&TS=1196819791&clientId=3552

• “Tale's theme too adult for kids, patron says: Library refuses request to ban or label book on gay penguins.”
• Written by Keith Reid, Knight Ridder Tribune Business News. Washington: May 5, 2007
• http://proquest.umi.com.proxy1.cl.msu.edu:2047/pqdweb?index=3&did=1265809531&SrchMode=1&sid=1&Fmt=3&VInst=PROD&VType=PQD&RQT=309&VName=PQD&TS=1196819791&clientId=3552
• This is a great scholarly article that discusses the debate of whether or not to ban this book because of it’s controversial subjects including “homosexuality” and “anti-family”.

• “Preschoolers and penguins: Propaganda pawns; When it comes to our culture war, can't we spare our children from the crossfire?” by Michael Medved.
• USA Today, November 29, 2006.
• http://za2uf4ps7f.search.serialssolutions.com.proxy1.cl.msu.edu:2047/directLink?&atitle=Preschoolers%20and%20penguins%3A%20Propaganda%20pawns%20%3B%20When%20it%20comes%20to%20our%20culture%20war%2C%20can't%20we%20spare%20our%20children%20from%20the%20crossfire%3F&author=Michael%20Medved&issn=07347456&title=USA%20TODAY&volume=&issue=&date=20061129&spage=A.13&id=doi:&sid=ProQ_ss&genre=article&lang=en
• A Boston Globe article entitled, “Schools chief bans book on penguins”
• This article discusses the controversial book and the banning of the book in a Charlotte, North Carolina school.
• Written by McClatchy Newspapers on December 20, 2006.
• http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2006/12/20/schools_chief_bans_book_on_penguins/
• http://www.simonsays.com/content/book.cfm?sid=183&pid=505791&agid=21

o This website is a great resource for teachers who are condisering using this book in their own classrooms. It includes helpful information including, about the book, discussion questions, activities, projects and research and also facts about the authors.

GBLTQ Literature Children's Book Reviews

Willhoite, Michael. (1990). Daddy’s Roommate. California: Alyson Wonderland.

Daddy’s Roommate is a story about a young boy whose parents have recently gotten divorced. His father has a new roommate, Frank, who has just been introduced into the picture. The story goes on to depict their everyday activities that they do with each other and also as a family. Some of the activities that the two men do together in the story are, work, eat and sleep together, and sometimes even fight with each other. The story shows that Frank is a new part of the young boys’ life as well as his fathers’ life. They have bonded just like father and son.

It is important to have a children’s book like this in a library because it depicts this family in such a positive light. It is direct and straight to the point. It not only depicts this gay father in a positive light, it fulfills the curiosity children have about the concept of homosexuality. The book explains that this new concept of his father having a new roommate as, “just one more kind of love” which I believe is a great portrayal and explanation. This story has received the Lambda Literary Award and is also number two on the American Library Association’s (ALA’s) list of the 100 most challenged books from 1990-2000.

Richardson, Justin and Peter Parnell (Writers)& Henry Cole (Illustrator). (2005). And Tango Makes Three. New York: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers.

Who says only human families can be different from one another? In the story, And Tango Makes Three, two male penguins are depicted as a gay couple in the respect that they take care of and raise a baby penguin. This is a true story that is based on two chinstrap penguins from New York’s Central Park Zoo, Roy and Silo. Roy and Silo had at one point in their lives came together as a couple. The zoo keepers decided to give an egg that another couple was un-able to hatch and give it to the couple. The story ends up with the hatching, birth and life of Tango, a baby female penguin, the couples’ newest member of their family.

I think this a great book that depicts a non-traditional family in a positive light. This book being a true story gives more dimensions to it; adding more depth behind the characters. Even though the main characters are penguins, it is extremely relatable. It shows young children that it is absolutely okay to be a part of a non-traditional family, in fact it is depicted as being no different that than a traditional family. The best part of the book to me was the end page. “There they snuggled together and, like all the other penguins in the penguin house, and all the other animals in the zoo, and all the families in the big city around them, they went to sleep.” This book has received numerous amounts of awards including, the 2006 American Library Association (ALA) Notable Children’s Book, ASPCA’s Henry Bergh Award, Gustavus Myer Outstanding Book Award, just to name a few. Along with these amazing awards and others, And Tango Makes Three was considered to be the most challenged book of 2006 according to the ALA.


Setterington, K. (Writer), & Priestly, A. (Illustrator). (2004). Mom and Mum are getting Married! Toronto: Second Story Press.

Mom and Mum are getting Married is a picture book story about a little girl named Rosie. Rosie has two mommies in the story but that is not where the conflict lies. Rosie came home from school to find out the good news that her ‘mom’ and her ‘mum’ were going to get married. The first thought in Rosie’s mind was, “Why can’t we stay the way we are? I like this.” Rosie then gets excited about the celebration but her mom explains to her that it is going to be a very small celebration at their cottage. There are challenges that arise in the story that must be overcome but there are few and they are relatively easy to overcome. These are challenges that can happen with any other ordinary marriage, like figuring out who the flower girl is going to be or how to not lose their precious wedding rings.

Overall, I think this story is flat and not-engaging. I was expecting the story to focus more on the implications of a lesbian couple getting married, but instead the story focuses on the minor implications that can arise during any wedding. The pictures in this book are extremely simply using only line drawings and simple colors which add to the flat, one-dimensional aspect of the story. What I thought would be the resolution to the story was quite a let down. Rosie’s two mommies did end up getting married but it didn’t show a typical ceremony; it basically just said it happened.

Boy Meets Boy

Instead of just putting my whole questioning the text paper on Boy Meets Boy on here, I'll just sum up what I wrote about.

My main question was...

Do you think this book portrayed the characters as well rounded people as opposed to focusing on their sexuality and is this important in GLBTQ literature?

I talked a lot about how David Levithan (the author) did a good job presenting his audience with well rounded characters instead of just focusing on their sexual preference. I also brought up the fact that this book seemed a little unrealistic in my eyes. This kind of scene would never happen in my high school but I think it's a nice refresher to see that EVERYONE in this book is accepted for who they are, no matter what their sexuality may be. I think Levithan creates this society to show us how things can be.

I also focused on identity. This was part of creating well-rounded, relate-able characters. I feel like as children grow up they learn who they are as individuals and through that create their own identity. I think the main character Paul helped other characters, like Tony become more comfortable with who he is and in the end gave him courage to come out to his parents. I think this can also give the readers courage to stand up for themselves and feel comfortable in their own skin.

Overall, I think this was a good, refreshing book with a new outlook that really made me think about how our society views and treats GLBTQ people.

Confessions of a Closet Catholic

Acceptance is a major theme in the book Confessions of a Closet Catholic. Justine is eleven years old, going on twelve and couldn’t be more confused with who is she as an individual. She definitely doesn’t feel accepted by her family. “One thing that gets me mad about my family is that they never take me seriously. That’s just one thing. I made a list once of all the things that get me down about my family. It’s pretty long, but here’s the top five: 1) My mother loves my sister more than me. 2 My dad loves my brother more than me. 3) My mother loves her miniature poodle, Bijoux, more than me. 4) Mom is tall, thing, blond, and beautiful. (So is Helena. I got the short, brown and dumpy genes. Why?! 5) Nobody in my family takes me seriously” (Littman, 9). Most young girls this age are going through this exact identity stage. They don’t like who they are and they want to change it. Justine is almost jealous at the fact that her friend Mac is catholic. At one point in the book, her friend Mac had left a silver cross necklace at her house and instead of returning it back to Mac, Justine lied and said she didn’t see it. “I put on the necklace, and feel a familiar pang of guilt. I haven’t worked out if it’s because I lied to Mac or whenever I put it on, I picture the look on Bubbe’s face if she ever saw me wearing it” (Littman, 12). This is the point in the novel where it describes her ‘closet confessions.’ She confesses her sins in her dark closet with a teddy bear. She’s pretending to be someone she is not. “I pretend I look like a nun, instead of an eleven-going-on-twelve-year-old Jewish girl with a dinner napkin on her head” (Littman, 11).

Justine’s family is considered to be “twice a year” Jews. I have heard this term before and I consider myself to be a “twice a year” catholic. It’s interesting to hear Justine say that one of the reasons why she wants to be catholic is because “Catholic families are more normal than Jewish ones.” (Page 21). I don’t necessarily agree on any level with what she said, and I actually don’t think does either. She kind of contradicts herself later on by saying that, “There aren’t that many of my friends’ moms with whom I can imagine sitting around on my bed having hot chocolate and cookies. I can’t even imagine doing it with my mom, because I’d be so worried about spilling my drink or getting crumbs on the bedspread. But it seems cozy and natural doing it with Mrs. Weinstein and Shira” (Littman, 62-3). Well, if she can be this comfortable with Shira and her mother, why are Catholic families more normal?

I’m kind of glad the term “twice a year” Jew came up in this book. Not only can I relate to this term, but it also gives me more connections to the book. I am both, Catholic and Jewish because my mom is Catholic and my dad is Jewish. It has always been this way. I feel like I am both, a “twice a year” Catholic and “twice a year” Jew. But does this mean that I am not accepted into the church or synagogue less than everyone else? I don’t think so.

I think it’s hard for anyone to find their own identity and I think what Justine is going through is completely normal. She doesn’t feel comfortable with her religion or her family. The one person in her family that she is afraid to tell the truth about her feelings about religion is her Bubbe. And in the end, her Bubbe is the only one in her family that understands what she’s going through. “I decided to give up being Jewish for Lent” (Littman, 103). Her mother screams and yells back at her while her Bubbe stays calm and responds with, “‘Adele, leave her,’’It’s not such a big thing. All children go through a time of questioning. It’s natural. Actually, I think questioning is a sign of intelligence” (Littman, 103-4). It isn’t until the end of the book when she receives the Star of David necklace from her Bubbe that she feels accepted, whole and complete.

Coretta Scott King Award

Purpose –
The Coretta Scott King Award “promotes understanding and appreciation of the culture of all peoples and their contribution to the realization of the American dream.” This award “encourages the artistic expression of the African American experience” through the arts. This award was first designed to commemorate both the lives of and also work of both Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Mrs. Coretta Scott King.

Selection Criteria –
Must portray some aspect of the African American experience, past, present, or future.

Must be written/illustrated by a African American.

Must be published in the U.S. in the year preceding presentation of the Award.

Must be original work

Must be written for a youth audience in one of the three categories:
Preschool–grade 4
Grades 5–8
Grades 9–12

Must meet established standards of quality writing for youth which include:
Clear plot
Well-drawn characters which portray growth and development during the course of the story
Writing style which is consistent with and suitable to the age intended
Accuracy

Particular attention will be paid to titles that seek to motivate readers to develop their own attitudes and behaviors as well as comprehend their personal duty and responsibility as citizens in a pluralistic society.

Illustrations should reflect established qualitative standards and
“heighten and extend the reader's awareness of the world around him. They should lead him to an appreciation of beauty. The style and content of the illustrations should be ... neither coy nor condescending ... Storytelling qualities should enlarge upon the story elements that were hinted at in the text and should include details that will awaken and strengthen the imagination of the reader and permit him to interpret the works and pictures in a manner unique to him.”—Cianciolo, Illustrations in Children's Books (p. 24.25)


Sponsor –
The Coretta Scott King Award was first established in 1969 and later in 1979 expanded to not only includes African American authors but also African American illustrators. The American Library Association (ALA) recognized this award in 1982. The other sponsors of this award include the Johnson Publications in Chicago, IL, the World Book, Encyclopedia Britannica and also Book Wholesalers (BWI).

Selection Committee Qualifications –
Members of the ALA may become a member of EMIERT (Ethnic Multicultural Information Exchange Round Table). Members generally include librarians, library employees or library organizations, and any individuals who are interested in supporting the work of EMIERT.

Present/Past Award Winners:
2007 Winner: Copper Sun by Sharon Draper
2007 Winner for Illustration: Moses: When Harriet Tubman Led Her People to Freedom Illustrated by Kadir Nelson written by Carole Boston Weatherford
1999 Winner for Illustration: i see the rhythm by Toyomi Igus, illustrated by Michele Wood
1998 Winner: Forged by Fire by Sharon Draper
1997 Winner: Slam! by Walter Dean Myers

Citing:
http://www.ala.org/ala/emiert/corettascottkingbookaward/corettascott.htm
http://www.acs.ucalgary.ca/~dkbrown/coretta.html