Books on Alternative Families
 This unprecedented collection of short memoirs by adult children of gay, lesbian, and transgender parents demonstrates once again that love cannot be policed or regulated, and that the bond between parents and children transcends petty categories.  "This is a remarkably candid and honest book on the ups and downs of gays and lesbians raising children. Whether the parent is gay or not is essentially unimportant, it is the commitment to caring and providing the best home possible that is the author's extraordinary message." A Reviewer at Amazon.com  As Our Families, Our Values turns upside-down the widely accepted notion that only heterosexual people are entitled to get married, have sex, and rear children, you gain insight into personal struggles and affirmations that testify to the spirituality, procreativity, and wholesomeness of the diverse relationships of the Lavender community. You will also learn about various ongoing efforts to give religious pride to the various configurations of gay relationships, families, and values and the disruption of popular interpretations of the Scriptures that have been used to justify the oppression of sexual minorities. 
In this rich, often surprising portrait of the everyday world of lesbian and gay relationships, Christopher Carrington captures the experiences of creating and maintaining a home and a "chosen" family. Observing lesbians and gay men as they go about their daily routines, Carrington unveils the complex, frequently hidden, and sometimes artful ways that gay people make a family and home for themselves.  Despite the rapidly growing number of lesbian families, until now little discussion has emerged of the specific developmental stages and common stresses lesbian couples face. In this first-of-its-kind guide, psychotherapist Suzanne Slater looks at the wide spectrum of lesbian families and presents a five-step model of the development of lesbian relationships. |
 Sociologist Stephanie Coontz does a remarkable job of documenting the truth about the history of family life in America over the decades. A must read book for anyone who wants to understand how the pervasive mythology of family life has made more difficult the choices confronting families and policymakers alike today.  In the followup to her earlier retrospective work, Dr. Stephanie Coontz lays out the realities of family life in contemporary America and sets forth an activist agenda to address the challenges faced by contemporary families of all configurations. 
An excellent, if occasionally tediously detailed, scholarly research work examining contemporary polygamous families in the fundamentalist Mormon Christian tradition. Wonderful cross-cultural comparisons by these two seasoned academic experts. The book sheds a lot of light on contemporary polygamy and shatters a lot of negative stereotypes.  This collection testifies to the extraordinary variety of families in the United States, revealing that family arrangements have always been diverse and have often been in flux. Case studies describe the wide array of family forms and values, gender roles, and parenting practices that have prevailed in different times and places for different population groups. Paying special attention to the intersections and cross-currents of class, race, and ethnicity, as well as their differential impact on gender, sexuality, and personal identity, the contributors highlight the socioeconomic and cultural forces that affect the organization and internal dynamics of family life. |
 A multi-faceted look at women who choose to define their relationships by standards other than sexuality. First person accounts and theory are woven together in this treatment of a little-discussed aspect of structuring relationships - is sex necessary?  How did a religion founded on the loosening of earthly ties come to extol the virtues of the traditional family? In this richly textured history of the relationship between Christianity and the family, Rosemary Radford Ruether traces the development of these centerpieces of modern life to reveal the misconceptions at the heart of the "family values" debate. ...Ruether examines how contemporary claims on the family - from same-sex marriage to feminism to the fragmentation of Christianity - shape the way Christians respond to and resist new definitions of private life. Finally, she argues convincingly for a way religion can accommodate the needs of believers without interference from the state, and how Christianity - always fluid and ever-evolving - can satisfy its role to its adherents without compromising its importance as a source of spiritual resilience.  Trans Forming Families: Real Stories About Transgendered Loved Ones includes 31 stories by parents of very young gender variant children, by parents of adult transgenders, by spouses and partners, and by special others - grandparents, siblings, adult children. It is the first book published detailing the journey families experience when their trans loved ones comes out to them -shock, denial, dismay, and finally understanding and acceptance. These are role models for all trans folks' families. The stories include a wide variety of transgenders - FTM's, MTF's, crossdressers, intersexed, young and older, married and single, several from other countries, some with disabilities. |