Heather Has Two Mommies

Newman, Leslea. Heather Has Two Mommies: Tenth Anniversary Edition. Los Angeles: Alyson Publications, 2000.Heather Has Two Mommies is about a girl named Heather who is not quite school-age yet who's favorite number is two. She has two arms, two legs, two eyes, and two mommies. Her mommies names are Mama Jane and Mama Kate. Mama Jane is a carpenter. In Mama Jane's toolbox there are two hammers: one for Mama Jane and one for little Heather. Mama Kate is a doctor. Mama Kate gives Heather aspirin to feel better and puts bandages on her cuts. Mama Jane and Mama Kate tell Heather that she will be joining a play group with a bunch of other kids and a teacher, Molly. One day, while playing with the other kids, a few of the kids start talking about what jobs their daddies have. This makes Heather upset because she doesn't have a daddy and she begins to cry. Molly gives Heather a hug and explains how not everyone has a daddy. She explains how some kids don't have daddies just like Heather and how some kids have two daddies and how each family is special. Molly says, "The most important thing about a family is that all the people in it love each other."The story of Heather and her two mommies has a very important message. The book allows each child to see that not any one family is the "right" family; that each family is special. Through children's drawings we are able to see what they do with their family members and how being a part of their family makes them happy. The illustrations are in black and white and I wonder what the purpose of this decision was. One strength of these illustrations is the chilren's drawings depicting their family. I feel like it adds a sense of relatability and realness to the book. However, one fear of mine when reading this book is how the stereotype of one lesbian being portrayed in a "manly" way is perpetuated by Mama Jane having short hair and being a carpenter. I do really like the moral of the story, as Molly put it, "The most important thing about a family is that all people in it love each other." I would use this book in my classroom, even as an introductory text to a unit on family, because it does incorporate blended families, nuclear families, single parent families, and adopted families.