I loved this story! It tore my heart when I read that the two penguins wanted a baby but they couldn't make one and that goes for my personal views as well. What makes this book controversial is obviously the two gay penguins but when you read the back of the book there is an authors note saying that this was a true story. That I think is reason enough to read the story even if you have a problem with the gay issue. What also makes this story cool is it's not dealing with people but just two cute little animals which delivers a message of innocence to a complex issue.
The title is the cleverist part of all. It takes two to tango was a nice play on an idea.
Today the gay/lesbian issue is a prominete issue. It is openly discussed amoung all sorts of people from rich to poor. Even affluent people discuss it like the presidents and senators. Some states not allow civil marriages. I PERSONALLY don't think that it is necessairly right to discriminate against a group of people because that brings us back to the time of slavery. We are prohibiting a right that most people have.
I also noticed when I was reading the book that they don't say mommies and daddies until you are on the penguin page. It says families. Everyone's definition of a family is different and in todays society it is an everchanging words that fits on perfect definition. 100 years ago it would be mom dad and kids. Today there are step siblings, step mom and dad, interracial, gay, lesbian, bisexual and on. Families live together and apart. Families might have grandparents or cousins living with them. There are even people who don't consider people related by blood family for personal reasons. I know that I don't call my "uncle jerry" a family member because of things he did. So although I see the issue at hand I think it needs to be taken into consideration that we are in the year 2010 and this book is only 5 years old.
I had a similar review of this book, and I think you made a lot of great points. I would be a little hesitant bringing in some controversial books, but this is one I think could belong in the classroom setting. I also really liked how the author used two animals to discuss this complex issue. I feel as though I came in with more of an open mind because of this, and I feel that others would as well. For children who do not know very much about gay couples, I think this could be an insightful book to expose them to. I was able to put myself into the story and think about how the penguins would feel. I didn't notice that the author used the word "family" instead of "mommies/daddies". However, I agree with what you said about this being a really positive aspect of the book.
ReplyDeleteI would really like to read this book! I think that it is a topic that needs to be addressed in schools. Having animals as the main characters I feel makes the book less controversial. I agree with Laura and the author to use the word "family" instead of "mommies/daddies." It shows how important it is for us as educators to pay attention to the diction we use. Would you want to read this book aloud to the class and have a discussion? Or do you feel it is more appropriate for parents to read to their children?
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