8.2 /10 1 Votes
Publication date 1997 ISBN 1-883672-66-X Originally published 1997 Publisher Ten Speed Press Page count 32 | 4.1/5 Goodreads Pages 32 OCLC 30979383 Genre Children's literature Illustrator Laura Nienhaus | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Similar Robert Skutch books, Children's literature, Family books | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Who's in a Family? is a children's book which depicts a variety of non-traditional families, including interracial, single-parent, and families with gay and lesbian partners as parents. It intentionally emphasizes the normalcy of different family arrangements.
Controversy
The book was at the center of a controversy in the state of Massachusetts in the United States when a number of parents objected to their children being exposed to it in school, claiming that it was intended to promote a "homosexual agenda". Parents David and Tonia Parker filed suit against the Lexington school district to have their children exempted from reading the book in class. The Parkers were ultimately unsuccessful, with the 1st Circuit Court of Appeals finally dismissing their lawsuit, noting that "the mere fact that a child is exposed on occasion in public school to a concept offensive to a parent’s religious belief does not inhibit the parent from instructing the child differently". The US Supreme Court declined to hear the case.