In Our Mothers' House by Patricia Polacco

48 p., Philomel, 2009. Narrated in the voice of a little girl grown up, this story recounts memories of growing up in a warm, loving family. The two moms, Meema and Marmee, have three children by adoption, each of a different ethnic background. The narrator remembers dancing with her family, celebrating holidays together, having block parties, being sick with a tummy virus, building a tree house, hosting the school's mother-daughter tea, and enjoying Nonno's (grandfather's) cooking. She loves that everyone in the family can speak freely, and recalls tenderly how her moms would do anything for the children. One neighbor is clearly prejudiced against them, which Meema and Marmee explain to the children as being full of fear and lacking in love; the family's other neighbors offer them support. When the children grow up and leave home, they return to marry in their mothers' garden and to share their own children's growing up with Meema and Marmee. After Meema and Marmee die, the narrator's younger brother lives in their house with his family. The house is home to the three now-grown children in the deepest sense of the word. With expressive pencil and marker illustrations, this story celebrates the joys of family life. Ages 7-10

And Tango Makes Three by Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell

Illustrated by Henry Cole.32 p., Simon & Shuster, 2005. Children in two-father families may feel that their family is "different." In the context of describing the animal families at the Central Park Zoo in New York City, this sweet story, which recounts actual events, introduces the penguins, Roy and Silo. Roy and Silo are "a little bit different" from the other penguin couples because they were both boys. A devoted couple, they build a nest together, and Roy finds what he thinks is an egg. It's only a stone, but the two penguins take turns sitting on it as if to hatch it. Of course, no baby hatches. But a kind zookeeper realizes that they're in love and want a baby, so he puts an egg in the nest. They take care of the egg very carefully until their baby, Tango, hatches. The two daddy penguins care lovingly for her in the same ways that the other penguin parents care for their babies. Zoo visitors cheer for Tango. With its gentle, expressive watercolor illustrations, this story acknowledges that two-father families may be atypical in some ways, but not in the essential ones: their care and love for their children. Ages 3-8

Daddy, Papa, and Me by Leslea Newman

Illustrated by Carol Thompson. 18 p., Tricycle, 2009. In this sweet, simple, rhyming story, a small child plays with Daddy and Papa, playing make-believe, making paper airplanes, playing with toy cars, painting, sewing, cooking, making music, and playing catch - until both fathers need a rest. When that happens, the child tucks them in on the couch and gives each a good-night kiss. By showing the ordinary, loving moments in this family, his story is an antidote to the notion of two-dad families as "different" without ever having to address that notion explicitly. Available as a board book. Ages 1-3

Uncle Bobby's Wedding by Sarah S. Brannen

32 p., Putnam, 2008.

When your favorite uncle gets married, you might worry that you'll lose the special relationship you have with him. Such is the case for little guinea pig Chloe, when her favorite uncle, Bobby, announces his engagement. Bobby welcomes Chloe's concerns and reassures her that she'll always be special to him. When Chloe goes to the ballet and sailing with Bobby and his fiancé, Jamie, she discovers that she can have great fun with both of them, and finds herself wishing that they were both her uncles. Bobby explains that when he and Jamie are married, that's exactly how it will be. Chloe is Bobby and Jamie's flower girl, and she chooses the wedding cake. She's able to participate joyfully in the wedding. Illustrated with colorful, tenderly expressive watercolors, this story is full of acceptance and reassurance.

Ages 4-8

One Dad, Two Dads, Brown Dad, Blue Dads by Johnny Valentine

Illustrated by Melody Sarecky. 32 p., Alyson, 1994.

Beginning with a take-off on Dr. Seuss's One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish, this story introduces the possibility of blue dads. A little girl doubts this until she meets a boy named Lou who has two blue dads. Lou tells the girl that his dads do all sorts of ordinary things, asking, "Did you think that they simply would stop being dads, just because they are blue?" The girl asks how Lou's dads became blue - perhaps at some point they went through the laundry with a blue pen? Lou reacts as if the questions are strange - his dads have always been blue, "well - because they are blue." It's being blue that seems "different" in this story, not being gay. The message is clear that dads don't stop being dads because they're gay, any more than they would because they were blue. In a humorous, upbeat style, this story offers appreciation for diverse families' similarities.

Ages: 4-8
Cultural Context: multicultural