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Gloria Goes To Gay Pride

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GLORIA GOES TO GAY PRIDE is a story about a little girl named Gloria's day at the Gay Pride Parade. Gloria begins her narrative with a description of some of the events that occur during such celebrations as Valentine's Day, Halloween, Hanukkah, and Mother's Day. She then recounts the events, colors, people and families who make up Gay Pride Day. She finds this celebration as enjoyable as the other holidays. Various issues are discussed throughout the book and several implicit messages are conveyed. One of the messages which may or may not be explicit to adults and children is that anyone can be gay. One of Gloria's moms, for instance, holds a more traditional woman's job as a nurse while the other is a mechanic. At the parade, Gloria sees many familiar faces, such as her female mail carrier, male music teacher and the male nurse who works with her mother and who is there with his toddler son. The primary message of this story is that "love is the most important thing of all." The book raises the issue of homophobia by including people by the side of the parade holding signs which says, "Gays go away." One of Gloria's mothers explains to her that some people don't think two women or two men should love each other, but that the parade is held to help ensure that people can have a choice. Although that message is appropriate and clarifies that being gay is an adult's choice, it somehow removes the issue from the direct experiences of a young child. It also does not acknowledge that youth may feel and be gay themselves. In addition, homophobic responses and attitudes may be experienced by children raised by gay and lesbian parents. As a way to counter much of the real-world homophobia, the author has included people in Gloria's life who, whether they are gay or not, are supportive of her family structure (the owner of a restaurant they frequent and their shoe salesperson, for instance). The book contains black and white illustrations and is recommended for children ages three to seven. The length of the book is appropriate for threes and the events Gloria experiences are familiar to many children who have gone to parades and, specifically, to the Gay Pride Parade.