A Tale of Two Daddies

A Tale of Two Daddies is a wonderful, charming, little story that brings to light some very important issues (in a very friendly way!).

Our little friend has two Daddies - Poppa and Daddy. Poppa is good at braids, Daddy takes care of her when she's scared. They split all of the important Daddy related items, because she has two wonderful Daddies to help her out! She explains to her new friend all of the fun ways Poppa and Daddy help her.

The book is very simple and sweet. It's perfect for young readers and is a wonderful way to explain to kids why their friend might have two Moms or two Dads. The book is progressive and positive, and I love that. It works in all of the best ways.

I absolutely love the cartoon-y pictures. I think it fits show more the theme well and is very engaging. There's lots of colours and not too much to drain your attention away from the story. Near the end of the book, it gives a little example for how the art was made and that made this story even better. I thought it was very cool to see how they made the effects be softened!

Overall, this is another must read gem in the children's fiction department. Pick up this picture book, because it is so totally worth it.

Five out of five stars.

I received this book for free through NetGalley. show less

[Source: ARC provided courtesy of NetGalley] This review also appears on Words.Blank-stare.com.

This children's book takes on the task of exploring a child's curiosity about families with same-sex parents. I was wary because there is a risk of getting too "adult" or heavy in a book with this subject matter, but the author proved me wrong. Oelschlager presents the topic in the form of innocent questions from one child to another who has two fathers. The young boy asks his playmate which of her father's is responsible for great version day-to-day care. He responses are, of course, what one would expect of a child -- simple and honest. She isn't rude or preachy in her answers, which may be more effective with kids.

The illustrations in this show more book are amazing and pulled me in immediately. The colors are bright and beautifully paired, and the characters are detailed yet simple. The illustrators' use of shading enables them to highlight one or two colors in each drawing, so they're not too busy. The images actually tell a story in and of themselves by focusing more on the children than on the adults who are the topic of conversation.

The epilogue provides an overview of the creative process between the two artists involved with the book. The step-by-step guide gives a rare glimpse into how the pictures went from pencil sketches to colorfully robust digital images. This would make a great teaching tool for kids to learn how digital illustrations differ from more traditional forms of art.

Overall, this is a strong book on all fronts. I definitely would recommend it for families like the one in the book, perhaps in giving kids an idea of how to respond to questions from their peers. I also think it is a great tool to help kids from "traditional" families learn about same-sex headed families.

Note: This is a companion book to "A Tale of Two Mommies." show less

Such a lovely book. A little boy asks his friend with two dads, which dad takes care of what things around the house and in life. I like this book because one kid respectfully asks questions about something he does not understand. I also like how the authors made sure that everything was not just daddy or poppa, but that some things they do together, and some things our girl is big enough to do on her own. A great book for any library or home, to help kids learn to discuss life different from how they know it to be.

I can appreciate children’s books that normalize all kinds of families. This is a great example of normalizing without othering. The illustrations are eye catching and the text is simple without being preachy. It’s a sweet story of a conversation between 2 young children, one of whom has 2 fathers. The back and forth is cutesy ( but in a way that will appeal to both caregivers and children). My 5 year old really liked this one because, even though they weren’t all accurate scenarios for her family situation (she has 2 dads) it was relatable to her and she really enjoyed the simplicity of the language and the pictures. I would recommend it!

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

I liked how this book was laid out in question and answer format. I also thought it was amazing how the author made the main character so confident and strong, because she never backed down from a question, and she always new the answer to them. I also liked how she was proud of the fact that she had two dads. I think that the main message of the story was that one should always appreciate what they have, and how everyone should be accepting of everyone regardless of differences, this includes that of your own family.

4. I liked the book “A Tale of Two Daddies” by Vanita Oelschlager because it touches on the topic of family differentiation and acceptance. The language in this book is clear, written in first person, and describes a conversation between a young girl with two daddies and a boy who is interested in their roles as parents. This is beneficial to readers because they can relate the chartacter’s conversation to conversations that they have had with their peers. The names Poppa and Daddy are in red print to help readers differentiate between the two characters. The book pushes readers to expand their ideas of family structures and places an emphasis on the normality of having parents of the same gender. The main message of this story is show more to demonstrate that family structure does not affect the ability to love. show less

Review written for both this version as well as A Tale of Two Mommies

A while back I heard a story on NPR about a shift in children's books toward inclusion of homosexual parental units in the stories. It wasn't something that had ever occurred to me before, both because I don't have kids and am not discriminated against because of my sexuality. But I can see how it is a growing need. How confusing would that be as a child of a same-sex couple to constantly be seeing traditional parental units in books and TV... But not in your own home.

I love several things about this book, not the least of which is it's mission. But it also takes traditional gender roles (as assigned to the mother and the father respectively) and assigns them to one of show more a same-sex couple where these "gender roles" mean nothing. For example...

The book revolves around two children meeting at a park, a girl with two daddies and a boy with presumably heterosexual parents. So the second child is curious about which of the little girls dads preforms each of the tasks that he is accustomed to either his mother or father preforming. On one page he asks: "Which dad would build your house in a tree? And which dad helps when you skin your knee?" Building a tree house, in my mind anyway, would be the traditional provenance of the father and tending wounds that of the mother. So when the little girl responds with Poppa's the one who builds in a tree. Daddy's the one who fixes my knee. she is assigning both of these tasks to one of her parents, not to a gender.

There are also questions that do not receive a specified answer, like how "neither" of her parents stay up late or catch a dog, that the girls doesn't need a parent to match up her socks for her, and that both can catch a frog and tuck her in at night.

They are also both there when she is "sad and needs some love". Because that is what this is all about. If romance novels have taught me nothing else, it's that love comes in many forms.

I should also mention that proceeds from the sales of this novel are going to charity, so buying both or either of of these books(one written for two mommies and one for two daddies) is supporting a good cause.

Copy courtesy of VanitaBooks, LLC, via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. show less