And Tango Makes Three, a book targeted at pre-schoolers through grade 3, has been moved from the children’s section to the nonfiction section of two Missouri public libraries. Why? Because parents complained it has homosexual undertones.
The book, by Peter Parnell and Justin Richardson, is based on the true story of two male penguins who adopted an abandoned egg at New York City’s Central Park Zoo in the late 1990s.
Gay penguins? Could that be a bit of a stretch on the part of some readers? I checked out the reviews at Amazon and here’s what readers had to say about the book:
"The dedicated and enthusiastic fathers do a great job of hatching their
funny and adorable daughter, and the three can still be seen at the zoo
today." - School Library Journal"Intrusions from the zookeeper, who remarks that the nuzzling males "must be in love," strike the narrative’s only false note." -Booklist
"I love the message of diversity…The fuzzy penguin chick pictures
alone are worth the price of the book." -G. Rovario-Cole"Not since Jerry Falwell spotted ‘gay’ Telly Tubbies on the loose has
there been a more stupid accusation of a supposed threat to child
development." -Steve"If you liked the message of ‘Brokeback Mountain’, you’ll love And Tango Makes Three." -Scrappin2Learn
"I’ve read that since the book was published, the penguin couple had a
painful break up, one of them leaving for a female." -Maria Beadnell"This true story is an excellent way to teach children that families are
of all varieties. By portraying ‘family’ as those who care for and love
one another, this book expresses the most important aspects of a true
family." -Ravenous Reader
Readers, have you read this book yet? If so, what did you think? I haven’t read it but I’ll bet the authors are jumping for joy…anytime a book gets banned, censored or is deemed controversial, sales shoot sky high.
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
I just found this article by chance. I have not read the book, but am laughing at the notion of “gay” undertones! These folks need to watch the Academy Award winning “March of the Penguins” for a basic biology lesson. The male penguins are the ones who take care of the egg, and they all do so in a large huddled group–each with their own egg, usually–while the entire populace of females return to the sea for nourishment. It’s survival–not homosexuality!
Perhaps the more appropriate lesson for children isn’t the perceived “gayness” of the penguins but rather that nature works in mysterious ways to ensure a species’ success. Considering what penguins (and other pole-dwelling creatures) are up against on a good day, not to mention with the compounding factor of global warming, these lessons are valuable from an ecological perspective as well as from the perspective that loving parents come in all forms!
gay families are not normal families. loving parents do not come in all forms. it’s sad that the world has accepted homosexuality as a common thing.
I haven’t read the book but I don’t understand why the book wasn’t aloud in the two libraries. There are books about adoption and those families don’t always look like a “typical” family. Families have parents of one race while the other parent is another so what is wrong with having a book to explain to children about two fathers and two mothers!?