Customer Reviews

My Two Uncles

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This book thoughtfully covers a niece's love for her uncle and his partner. It also touches on the difficulties that families have at times accepting other family members.

An honest and gentle depiction of what life is really like.

Elly, a pre-tween of indeterminate age loves visiting her Uncle Ned and his partner Phil, whom she calls Uncle Phil. They share a plush apartment in a city and welcome their niece with open arms.

Her grandfather takes a dim view of their partnership. Since Ned is his son, he grudgingly accepts the fact that Phil is an important person in his life. He tells Ned not to bring Phil to any family functions. Irate, Ned decides to boycott family gatherings unless Phil is included.

Elly's father has a wonderfully intelligent and open discussion abot Ned and Phil with her. He explains that sometimes people who are the same gender love one another the way he and Elly's mother love each other and sadly, not everybody can accept that.

Sadder but wiser, Elly, like her wise and tolerant father loves her uncles and years for their attendance at a family wedding. They helped her to make a very special gift and when it arrives....

This is an excellent book that explains love to young readers in a serious, accepting and non-threatening way. It is an ideal book for families and edcuators and will do a lot to pave the Road to Tolerance.

I know many people who have gay fathers or relitives. This book is gentle and reasurring. No matter what type of family yours is they love you all the same.

Growing up in a fatherless household meant that I was predestined to develop daddy-issues later in life. While that turned out to be true, one thing I didn't expect was when - at age fourteen - I became a homosexual.

My understanding of homosexuality was that it was something you were born with; something you couldn't control. However, my mother insisted that I became a gay because of the heavy dose of female authority in my life. I have to admit, what she said made a lot of sense.

Since my new lifestyle conflicted with my mother's strict religious beliefs, she banished me from my home and sent me to live with my Uncle Geoffrey and Uncle Matthew.

I'd heard stories about my two uncles and their strange lifestyle, but beyond a few ludicrous stories (one of which involved a gerbil and some PVC piping), I knew very little about them.

The four years I spent with my Uncle Geoffrey and Uncle Matthew turned out to be a magical time of understanding and acceptance. While they were no substitute for a real father, they were able to teach me that there was nothing wrong with the way I was choosing to lead my life.

After years of not speaking to my mother, I decided to send her a copy of Judith Vigna's "My Two Uncles." The book does a good job of explaining that homosexuality is love between two adults of the same sex, and that it's not unlike so called "traditional" marriage.

Three weeks after I sent the book I received a terse letter from my mother that read, "Thanks for the book, queer. Maybe I'll read it. Maybe I won't."

To some this might sound dismissive, but to me it sounded like progress. "Maybe" she would read it. That was good enough for me.

Years later, my mother still doesn't talk to me, so I don't know if she ever read the book, but I like to think that she did. My Uncle Geoffrey and Uncle Matthew are both dead now, but the lessons they taught me will live on, thanks to them and "My Two Uncles."