This is a story of Roy and Silo, two male penguins at the Central Park Zoo in New York. These two male penguins spend all of their time together and notice that they are not able to have a family like the other penguins in the habitat, although they try to hatch a rock. The penguin keeper gives the couple an egg that has been abandoned and the couple nurture the egg until it is hatched. When it is hatched that penguin becomes the first baby penguin with two dads. The two male penguins and their new baby became a family and cuddled up like the rest of the families. This is a super adorable book. A good way to introduce families and what makes a family. It's very simple and an easy read for toddlers. The pictures are soft and simple.

Sweet little book, true story, about a pair of male penguins in Central Park Zoo that paired up and tried to raise a chick - brooding a rock, for instance. A keeper gave them a spare egg (second fertile egg laid by a penguin pair that usually managed to raise one), and they brooded and raised the chick successfully. Nice story. BTW - it's on the list of suggested banned books this year (2009) - sigh. ( )

Ages 4 and Up. And Tango Makes Three has been THE controversial picture book since it was published. The story of two male penguins, Roy and Silo, who hatch an egg, it is alternatively loved and detested. I found it quite mediocre. The most charming aspect of the book is the Author's Note in the back which explains that the book is based on real penguins at the Central Park Zoo. I enjoyed the closing sentence, but overall the writing lacks flow. The illustrations, while nicely done in watercolor, don't give you any sense of the penguins' personalities - you can't tell Roy and Silo apart. This book is recommended for all sizes of public libraries and elementary school libraries, because it offers a story of an non-traditional family that can be difficult to find in a picture book and because its "banned" status makes it very popular. ( )

This is a wonderful story. I do not understand why it offends people so greatly. It is a great story about love, friendship, and family. ( )

And Tango Makes Three is the true story of a pair of male chinstrap penguins who nest an adopted fertile egg and raise a daughter (named Tango) in New York City’s Central Park Zoo.

The text and illustrations combine to develop a poignant story where Roy and Silo, amid a zoo-full of nesting penguin couples, look forlornly at their empty nest and, later, at a rock that refuses to hatch. But when a zookeeper replaces the rock with an abandoned egg from a pair who laid two, the story builds into a happy and inclusive example of diversity.

Published in 2005, this was the most frequently challenged book in 2006, 2007, and 2008. An update about the real-life penguin pair is posted here. ( )