Jacob's New Dress
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- $6.99
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- $6.99
Publisher Description
One of 10 Best Indie Picture Books of 2014, ForeWord Reviews
Runner-Up, 2014 New England Book Festival: Children's Books
2014 Distinguished List of the Association of Children's Librarians of Northern California
CCBC Choices 2015
An affirming story about gender nonconformity.
Jacob loves playing dress-up, when he can be anything he wants to be. Some kids at school say he can't wear "girl" clothes, but Jacob wants to wear a dress to school. Can he convince his parents to let him wear what he wants? This heartwarming story speaks to the unique challenges faced by children who don't identify with traditional gender roles.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
"Jacob, why do you always wear the girl clothes?" a schoolmate asks the gender nonconforming hero in the classroom dress-up corner. It's a question that Jacob's parents struggle with, as well. When the boy asks his mother to help make a "real dress" after bullies tear off a togalike outfit he's improvised from a bath towel, Mom takes a long time to answer. "The longer she didn't answer, the less Jacob could breathe." But Mom and Dad believe that "There are all sorts of ways to be a boy," and they offer support that's low-key, emotionally authentic, and unwavering ("Well, it's not what I would wear, but you look great," says Dad, who has to take his own long pause before answering). The Hoffmans, whose experience as parents inspired the story, and Case (Sophie and the Next-Door Monsters) who contributes thoughtful, down-to-earth cartoons of home and school have created an ideal companion for families and educators: upbeat yet realistic, astute about peer dynamics, and blessedly lacking in a sermonizing Big Moment. Ages 4 7.