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A review by readaloud_mom
Heather Has Two Mommies by Lesléa Newman
slow-paced
- Strong character development? No
3.0
While there are definitely not enough picture books depicting two-mom families, I'm not convinced that editing and re-issuing Heather Has Two Mommies was the right way to address that. This version of the book is... kinda OK as a "mirror" book? Maybe a bit better as a "window"? While this edition does cut out the part where the other kids pick on Heather, it doesn't do it with any particular grace.
After a looong setup about Heather's fun life with her two mommies (playing ball, making cookies, etc.), Heather goes to school for the first time. She's asked about her dad and feels weird about it for two seconds. Then the teacher decides everybody should draw their families! We see that Heather's classmates come from many family configurations (straight nuclear family, single mom, two dads, divorced parents with a stepdad, grandmother with dogs, another straight nuclear family - and also probably a third straight nuclear family for a kid who never gets a name?)
Then Heather's moms come to pick her up and she points twice at her picture talking about how "this is the mommy I love the best". The End! No attempt to cover the tracks of how, in the classic version, someone presumably asked "which mommy do you love the best?" Just a disjointed, unsatisfying ending that isn't connected to anything in this edition.
There are sooooo few "mirror" books showing two-mom families that this book is staying on my kid's shelf for now - but I look forward to the day when I find better options. I would also recommend "Mommy, Mama and Me", "Keesha and Her Two Moms Go Swimming" and "Things in the Sea Are Touching Me" more highly to other folks looking for mirrors.
Edited to add: Also! Regardless of whether you're looking for a window or a mirror, I'd HIGHLY recommend pairing Flamingo Rampant's "Zero Dads Club" with "Heather Has Two Mommies"! The two books are very much in dialogue, covering very similar themes from different angles!
Then Heather's moms come to pick her up and she points twice at her picture talking about how "this is the mommy I love the best". The End! No attempt to cover the tracks of how, in the classic version, someone presumably asked "which mommy do you love the best?" Just a disjointed, unsatisfying ending that isn't connected to anything in this edition.
There are sooooo few "mirror" books showing two-mom families that this book is staying on my kid's shelf for now - but I look forward to the day when I find better options. I would also recommend "Mommy, Mama and Me", "Keesha and Her Two Moms Go Swimming" and "Things in the Sea Are Touching Me" more highly to other folks looking for mirrors.
Edited to add: Also! Regardless of whether you're looking for a window or a mirror, I'd HIGHLY recommend pairing Flamingo Rampant's "Zero Dads Club" with "Heather Has Two Mommies"! The two books are very much in dialogue, covering very similar themes from different angles!