Monday, July 1, 2013

Queer Books for Kids: Book List

As I mentioned in an earlier post, this blog has come about in part because of a project I'm doing at school. I thought I'd post the project description and book list for your perusal, and I'd love any suggestions people have for other titles to include! Here it is:

Project description: 

For this project, I will read picture-books and novels written for children which offer representations of homosexuality and queerness, both overt and coded. In order to provide myself a theoretical framework, I will also read a small selection of relevant queer theory and critical works.

I will consider the ways in which these texts engage not only gender and sexuality, but also identity politics, intersectionality, normativity, and the closet. I will explore the ways in which these representations vary not only from work to work and medium to medium (picture-book, novel, graphic novel) but also when representing child or adult characters, and when intended for very young or for middle-grade readerships.  

WEEK 1 – kings and queens
  • Oscar Wilde: Fairy Tales                                                                          
  • Oscar Wilde, adapted into comics by P Craig Russell: Fairy Tales
  • Brière-Haquet: La princesse qui n’aimait pas les princes                            
  • Nijland: the King and King series                                                        
  • Cornelia Funke: Princess Knight                                                                 

WEEK 2 – euphemisms and implications
  • Eve Sedgwick: “The Epistemology of the Closet”                           
  • Carson Kressley: You're Different and That's Super                           
  • Ashley Spires: Small Saul                                                                          
  • Rachel Vail: Piggy Bunny                                                                     
  • Lesléa Newman: The Boy Who Cried Fabulous                                    
  • Harvey Fierstein: The Sissy Duckling                                                           
  • Tomie dePaola: Oliver Button Is a Sissy                                                  

WEEK 3 – the queerness around us
  • Godon: Hello, Sailor                                                                     
  • Richardson: And Tango Makes Three                                              
  • Scotto: Jérôme par coeur                                                            
  • Lesléa Newman: Gloria Goes to Gay Pride                                          

WEEK 4 – queer families, week 1
  • Ford: “Why Lesléa Newman Makes Heather into Zoe”             
  • Todd Parr: selected picture books                                                 
  • Lesléa Newman: selected picture books                                                
  • Combes: A B C: A Family Alphabet Book                                   

WEEK 5 – queer families, week 2
  • Patricia Polacco: In Our Mothers’ House                                                
  • Ken Setterington: Mom and Mum Are Getting Married!                 
  • Elwin: Asha’s Mums                                                                     
  • Brannen: Uncle Bobby’s Wedding                                               
  • Cory Silverberg: What Makes a Baby                                                      
  • Garden: Molly’s Family                                                                 
  • Willhoite: Daddy’s Roommate                                                      

WEEK 6 – gender independence
  • Zolotow: William’s Doll                                                                    
  • Ewert: 10,000 Dresses                                                                  
  • Kilodavis: My Princess Boy                                                             
  • Gould: X: a fabulous child’s story                                          
  • Hughes: No Girls Allowed                                                              
  • David Walliams: The Boy in the Dress                                                   

WEEK 7 – Baum & Barrie
  • Pugh: "There lived in the Land of Oz..."                              
  • Lauren Berlant: “Live Sex Acts (Parental Advisory: Explicit Material).” 
  • L Frank Baum: The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
  • James M Barrie: Peter Pan

WEEK 8 – Louise Fitzhugh
  • Louise Fitzhugh: Harriet the Spy                                                                
  • Louise Fitzhugh: Nobody’s Family is Going to Change                       
  • Bernstein: “The Queerness of Harriet the Spy”                        

WEEK 9 – contemporary queer kids’ novels, week 1
  • James Howe: The Misfits                                                                       
  • James Howe: Totally Joe                                                                           
  • Tim Federle: Better Nate Than Ever                                                 

WEEK 10 – contemporary queer kids’ novels, week 2
  • Glen Huser: Stitches
  • E L Konigsburg: Mysterious Edge of the Heroic World                    
  • Robinson: “Lovebugs and Queer Boys in E. L. Konigsburg’s...”       

WEEK 11 – contemporary queer kids’ novels, week 3    
  • McCaughrean: The Death-Defying Pepper Roux                             
  • Gennari: My Mixed-up Berry-Blue Summer                           

WEEK 12 – queer comics for kids
  • Raina Telgemeier: Drama
  • Ryan North: Adventure Time
  • Joey Comeau: Bravest Warriors                                                             

In theory, you should be able to expect a reading response-type post on each of these works from me by Christmas!               


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