Books on Parenting in 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.  The newest picture book about human relationships...focuses on families in which the parents are lesbians, gay men, or transgendered persons, and the children are either offspring of one of the parents or adopted or foster children of one or both parents...The thrust of the whole project is that these good families differ from those of analogous heterosexual parents only in that they do or may suffer from antigay social attitudes and antigay public policies.  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.  More and more gays and lesbians are choosing to parent, and the challenges that accompany this choice can be difficult. The Queer Parent's Primer helps make the endeavor a positive, productive one. Through examples and interactive exercises, author Stephanie Brill encourages a proactive approach, with concrete suggestions on how to present the alternative family in public and private arenas and how to help children of these new unions resist gender stereotyping. Topics include creating a healthy family, coming out for good, finding culturally sensitive childcare and schools, and making decisions about spirituality and family celebrations. Also covered are single parenting, breaking up, and the legal aspects of protecting these special families. |
The Lesbian and Gay Parenting Handbook by April Martin is an indispensable resource for lesbians and gay men who are thinking about, or involved in, parenting. Martin, a psychologist and lesbian parent of two children, has compiled advice and information from almost 60 families and has drawn on her own experience. She touches on every aspect of gay and lesbian parenting, and where she doesn't go into depth, she refers readers to further resources...Martin discusses family roles, dealing with antihomosexual bias, dealing with family crises, and how to handle issues children may have about growing up with gay or lesbian parents.  Presenting a unique longitudinal study of 25 children raised in lesbian mother families, and a comparison group raised by single heterosexual mothers, the book lays out the developmental effects of growing up in a same-sex household - and confronts a range of myths and stereotypes along the way. The book focuses on the follow-up interviews with grown-up children who took part in the study - all of whom were born to heterosexual partnerships but whose mothers later entered lesbian relationships...The study's painstakingly compiled findings clearly demonstrate that children from lesbian mother families are no more likely than others to experience mental health problems in adulthood, children generally form positive and mutually beneficial bonds with their mothers' female partners, social stigmatization does not prevent children from enjoying good relationships with peers, and children of lesbians are not more likely to identify as homosexual or bisexual themselves.  Queer Families, Common Agendas: Gay People, Lesbians, and Family Values examines the real life experience of those affected by current laws and policies regarding homosexual families...Here you will be able to compare the progress of policy in the U.S. and Canada for gay and lesbian parents and their children and explore relevant legal approaches in the two countries... You will gain insight into the contradictions in policies and practices that ultimately disadvantage children based on their family origins, and you will discover alternative approaches for improved services to homosexual families.  "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 |