From: Gawel, Richard <Richard.Gawel_at_penton.com>
Date: Fri, 09 Aug 2013 15:13:16 +0000

Hi Allie and all,

I have to agree with Todd. I absolutely loved "Because I'm Your Dad" and di dn't see it as a case of any type of gender stereotyping. First, just becau se the dad in this book is fun, it doesn't make the mom the dull one by def ault. She isn't even mentioned. Maybe she's even crazier than dad is. Maybe she isn't in the picture at all. (Divorced? Deceased?) Picture book author s have it rough these days: 32 pages and less than 500 words to tell a good story. In this case, Mr. Zappa focused on the relationship between him and his daughter, who engages in some non-stereotypical fun for a girl, like r obots and drums too. The absence of a mother figure in the book should not be taken as a slight against motherhood or a perpetuation of traditional ro les. Let's look at what the book celebrates, and not what's missing, becaus e the "what's missing" conversation has no end.

Thanks!

Rich Gawel

Date: Thursday, August 8, 2013 9:43 AM To: ccbc-net ccbc-net

Subject: Re:
 Gender Roles in Picture Books

Hi Allie,

I read Ahmet Zappa & Dan Santat's BECAUSE I'M YOUR DAD after your comments about it, but I'm not sure I read the same book.

You had said: "BECAUSE I'M YOUR DAD (Zappa, 2013), is full of gender stereotypes ("Because I'm your dad, you'll grow up knowing robots are cool, but monsters are even cooler") and also plays into the stereotype that Dad is the "fun" parent ("Because I'm your dad, you can have spaghetti for breakfast... Because I'm your dad, you can sometimes stay up late with me to watch TV...")."

If a reader approaches the book as Because *I'M* Your Dad (rather than Because I'm Your *DAD*), it's a very different experience. I read it as a monster dad who is in essence Ahmet Zappa himself. The dedication is 'For My Little Monster', and the adult monster speaks to how because he is the little monster's father, the little one might have an unusual first name, that Dad will be on the road as a rock musician, and that they'll travel a lot together. I took this as a very individual experience, hardly speaking to fatherhood in general. Many of the episodes aren't gender-specific to fathers or mothers - just parents who focus on fun.

I don't disagree that there are far too many examples of insidious gender stereotyping in children's books, but I'm not so sure this is the best example of one.

Thanks, Todd

-- Todd Krueger Collection Development Baltimore County Public Library Towson MD 21204 toddbcpl_at_gmail.com
Received on Fri 09 Aug 2013 03:13:16 PM CDT