Controversial Children's Books

My Two Uncles- Judith Vigna

Type: Picture Book- line drawings and watercolors

Intended for children ages 5-11

                My Two Uncles, is a children’s picture book that deals with the controversial issue of homosexuality. It has to do with a little girl who has two uncles; her father’s biological brother, Ned, and his friend Phil.  Ned’s father does not approve of the way he and Phil live their lives, and it all comes to be seen when Ned is invited to his parent’s wedding anniversary, but refuses to go because he cannot take Phil to the party.

                I honestly really liked this book. I thought the controversial issue was handled in an appropriate manner that is relevant to something that could happen in the real world. The child in this book is kind of caught in the middle of the argument between the grandfather and the uncle and wonders if she too did something to cause the uproar. I think this point in the book is really relatable for children who have been caught in the middle of this type of argument, but I also think that it makes the story easy for its readers to relate too. The story doesn’t just describe what it means to be gay or a homosexual to its audience, but it actually describes a situation that these homosexual characters and their family members are going through.  The book also had a good lesson at the end that I think can benefit all students who read this book- something along the lines of being different is okay, which is applicable to other topics besides homosexuality. Also, I felt that the characters and the setting within the book were very real and identifiable along with the rest of the story. The characters seemed like family members that any one person could have in their family.

                I defiantly think that this book could be used in a classroom environment, however seeing as it is a controversial book with a touchy subject matter, I would have to have a very precise lesson plan and reasoning for using this book within the classroom. I would also probably send home a letter or include it in a book list at the beginning of the year so that parents are aware and can voice their objections before work is started with the book because even though it is more widely accepted, many people still have problems surrounding those who are homosexual.

In The Night Kitchen- Maurice Sendak

Type: Picture book- abstract watercolor

Intended for children ages 5-10

                This book is about a little boy who falls into the crazy world of the night kitchen. He is baked into a cake, turns bread into an airplane and falls into a giant bottle of milk while trying to retrieve a cup for the chefs. It’s a very whimsical abstract book that allows your imagination to run wild along with the main character of the book.

                I thought it was kind of silly that this book is considered to be controversial. The reason it makes it onto controversial book lists is because the little boy in the book falls through the world naked, and is naked in other parts of the book, like when he falls into the jar of milk.  There was no plot line or lesson within this book that I would consider to be controversial; it is simply about a boy’s dream of falling into the night kitchen and doing crazy things like making an airplane out of break and then proceeding to fly around in it.  I think the controversy behind the naked boy hast mostly to do with the parents saying something about it. I don’t think that children reading this book are going to really mind it. The nudity is handled in a very low key kind of way, it is not included in the book for the shock value, and it is in the book as part of the story line; the boy fell out of his clothes and into the night kitchen.

                I think an abstract book like this could come with many benefits if it is used in the classroom setting. It is one of those books that you need to think about after reading it. There is no clear point or reason to the story line of the book. A book like this could be a great device to use to get students engaged and thinking about the purpose of the text. I do not think any kind of notice would be necessary in order to use this book in the classroom. I would be comfortable simply using it in class and then dealing with any complaints about it afterwards.