A Tale of Two Daddies

5 Stars

TITLE:  A Tale of Two Daddies
AUTHOR: Vanita Oelschlager
PUBLISHED: 
LENGTH: 42 Pages
LANGUAGE:  English
RATING:  Ages 4 and Up
GENRE:  Educational
PURCHASE LINKS: Amazon

Summary

In an affectionate story of adoption in a gay family, a small girl answers a friend's questions about what it is like to have two fathers. The boy asks: “Which dad would build your home in a tree? And which dad helps when you skin your knee?” And the girl answers: “Poppa's the one who builds in a tree. / Daddy's the one who fixes my knee.” The simple, immediate rhymes are illustrated with digitally touched linoleum prints in bright colors and thick black lines that show the friends at play, as well as cozy scenarios of the girl in her nurturing home; in one particularly warm scene, Poppa serves a plate of eggs and bacon that looks like a smiley face. Strangely, the adults' faces are never shown, just distant views of their legs and arms: one daddy is formally dressed, the other is in jeans and sneakers. The story's message is clear in her answer to the question, “Who is your dad when you're sad and need some love?” Both, of course. 

Review

In this delightful story of a young girl who was adopted by two men, we see that having two daddies isn't any different than having a mommy and a daddy. We get to see this in such an entertaining and beautifully rythmic way that even the very young could understand that two loving parents are the same no matter if they are two men, two women or a man and a woman. 

The illustrations are wonderfully done. The large illustrations made the story clear and consise and easily understood by even the youngest child. 

The author covered a broad range of topics by answering the sometimes awkward questions about same-sex parents through a child's eyes.

I highly recommend this story to anyone struggling with this issue. Or simply anyone who wishes to enlighten their children to the realities that some children have different families. 

My Rating