Lisa Robinson’s Were I Not a Girl: The Inspiring and True Story of Dr. James Barry (2020)
RaiseThemRighteous | Book Review
by jlmiller1
2y ago
“We cannot define the interior life of James Barry. If Barry did identify as another gender—if he was a transgender man as it is understood today—he would not have had the language to say so. But we have his actions, and these reflect someone who lived as a man for nearly half a century and wished to be known as a man after his death. In this way, James Barry is a reminder that LGBTQ+ stories are often shrouded, confused, or misrepresented but have been, and will always be, an essential part of history.” – Mariel Tishma from “A surgeon and a gentleman: the life of James Barry” Rob Sanders a ..read more
Visit website
Rob Sanders’ Mayor Pete: The Story of Pete Buttigieg (2020)
RaiseThemRighteous | Book Review
by jlmiller1
2y ago
There’s always a too small town and a white boy with big dreams and unknown potential. Or at least that appears to be how the small, but steadily growing field of LGBTQ+ nonfiction picture books is developing. Harvey Milk and Gilbert Baker had their 15 minutes of picture book fame, now it’s Mayor Pete’s turn. Mayor Pete: The Story of Pete Buttigieg (2020), written by Rob Sanders and illustrated by Levi Hastings, is a detail rich biography that follows the recent presidential hopeful from his birth in South Bend, Indiana through his early education, when his interest in service and power emerg ..read more
Visit website
Jodie Patterson’s Born Ready: The True Story of a Boy Named Penelope (2021)
RaiseThemRighteous | Book Review
by jlmiller1
2y ago
Like many picture books about transgender or nonbinary youth, Born Ready: The True Story of a Boy Named Penelope (2021), is written by the mother of a transgender child. Author, Jodie Patterson, and illustrator, Charnelle Pinkney Barlow, create a celebratory picture book that introduces readers to Penelope, a young Black boy who knows two things for sure: 1) he’s a ninja and 2) he’s a boy.   The story unfolds in the first person, which gives readers a quick sense of intimacy with the protagonist-narrator. To further develop this connection, Barlow often uses thought bubbles alongside ima ..read more
Visit website
Norene Paulson’s Benny’s True Colors (2020)
RaiseThemRighteous | Book Review
by jlmiller1
3y ago
Written by Norene Paulson and illustrated by Anne Passchier, Benny’s True Colors (2020) is a story about a butterfly everyone thinks is a bat. Benny the butterfly is constantly misidentified, because he looks like a bat. Although Benny looks like a bat, he feels like a butterfly and enjoys doing things usually associated with butterflies. Even more, in his dreams, Benny doesn’t just feel like a butterfly – he looks like one, too. Even though Benny feels like a butterfly and dreams that he is a butterfly, he has a lot of trouble getting his body to do butterfly things. His wings don’t flutter ..read more
Visit website
Kerri Mullen’s Eli’s New Clothes (2020)
RaiseThemRighteous | Book Review
by jlmiller1
3y ago
Kerri Mullen’s Eli’s New Clothes (2020) is a sweetly illustrated story about a young girl named Chloe and her relationship to her favorite dolls. Chloe loves Elizabeth, Vanessa, and Caroline. She enjoys dressing them up in beautiful clothes and playing tea party. Unbeknownst to Chloe, when she leaves for school, her dolls come to life. This adds a generous dash of whimsy to the story and serves as a unique vehicle to explore gender expression and identification while positioning a child, Chloe, in a quasi-parental role vis-à-vis her dolls. Mullen, playing double duty as both writer and illust ..read more
Visit website
Maddox Lyons and Jessica Verdi’s I’m Not A Girl (2020)
RaiseThemRighteous | Book Review
by jlmiller1
3y ago
I’m Not A Girl (2020), co-written by Maddox Lyons and Jessica Verdi and illustrated by Dana Simpson, is the story of a transgender boy who develops clarity and confidence about his identify as well as the ability to self-advocate. The cover depicts a white child with long red hair, freckles, and big green eyes staring longingly through the window of a barbershop. On the other side of the glass, a young white child of approximately the same age is getting a short haircut. As the story opens, it becomes clear that the red-haired child is both frustrated and sad with the gender role expectations ..read more
Visit website
Karin Littlewood’s Immi’s Gift (2010) and Farhana Zia’s Lali’s Feather (2020)
RaiseThemRighteous | Book Review
by jlmiller1
3y ago
Karin Littlewood’s Immi’s Gift and Farhana Zia’s Lali’s Feather are two Peachtree publications featuring creative characters who embrace nature imaginatively. Although published 10 years apart, both books celebrate cultural diversity, creativity, and strong girl protagonists! In an author’s note, Littlewood explains that she had written Immi’s story and drawn her many times before giving her a name. Immi is an Inuit name short for Immiayuk, which means echo. Littlewood notes that the word “seems very fitting for this story.” Indeed, it does! Inuit communities live in Arctic areas of Canada, A ..read more
Visit website
Christina Francine’s Mr. Inker Finds a Home
RaiseThemRighteous | Book Review
by jlmiller1
3y ago
Christina Francine’s Mr. Inker Finds a Home is a young boy named Rafiq who receives a talking pen named Mr. Inker for his birthday. This Level 3 reader is, at its core, a story about friends old and new. Rafiq has recently moved to the US from Pakistan and misses his old friends. His new friend, Mr. Inker, encourages him to connect with them by writing letters. In this time of physical distancing we can all use a reminder that connecting can occur in many ways. Francine’s book is timely in its message and welcome in its representation of a young Pakistani immigrant happy to be in America, but ..read more
Visit website
#ReadYourWorld: Rainbow (A First Book of Pride)
RaiseThemRighteous | Book Review
by jlmiller1
3y ago
Written by Michael Genhart, PhD and illustrated by Anne Passchier, Rainbow: A First Book of Pride (2019) is a colorful celebration of rainbow families that introduces very young readers to the symbolism behind the Pride flag. The first page proclaims: “Every color means something.” The corresponding image shows a racially diverse group of people waving Pride flags. The next series of two-page spreads each focus on a color in the flag and its corresponding meaning: red for life, orange for healing, yellow for sunshine, green for nature, blue for harmony, and violet for spirit. Lesbian and gay ..read more
Visit website
#ReadYourWorld: Snowflake Stories
RaiseThemRighteous | Book Review
by jlmiller1
3y ago
Snowflake Stories allows families to personalize professionally written and illustrated stories so children can see themselves and the important people in their lives reflected in picture books. The press offers bilingual options for boys (baseball or soccer) and girls (dance or soccer). Children can be a co-creator in the storytelling venture by choosing and designing characters. My child chose to include his parents and grandparents, but friends, aunts, uncles, ext. can be plugged in instead. Book titles are also personalized, as seen in the image below. The story is definetely engaging enou ..read more
Visit website

Follow RaiseThemRighteous | Book Review on FeedSpot

Continue with Google
Continue with Apple
OR