Donovan’s Big Day

Illustrated by Mike Dutton
Tricycle Press, 2011

Donovan's Big DayBuy This Book

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Donovan’s two moms are getting married! And Donovan has a very special job to do at the wedding. Will he remember how to do his really important job? A story that reinforces the message “Love makes a family.”

Wedding
Here I am on my own wedding day with my spouse, Mary Newman Vazquez.

Why I wrote this book

One of the happiest days of my life was the day that Mary and I got legally married (on our 16th anniversary!). I wanted to write a book that captured all the joy of that day for children who have two moms who make a lifetime commitment to each other, whether their marriage is considered legal or not by the state in which they live.

Excerpt

“He had to take his place in line with
Grandma and Grandpa and Nana and
Poppa right behind his baby cousin Sienna
who had flowers in her hair
and flowers on her dress
and flowers in a basket looped over her arm
and after he waited and waited and waited
when his turn finally came…”

“He had to walk—
not run, not skip, not hop, not leap,
not bounce, not dance—down the aisle.”

©2009 Lesléa Newman

Reviews

“As in Newman’s Mommy, Mama and Me (Tricycle, 2009), this book broaches a controversial issue in an appealing, nonthreatening way.”

“Centered on the child’s experience and refreshingly eschewing reference to controversy, the book emerges as a celebration of not only Mommy and Mama’s mutual love but progress toward equal marriage rights for same-sex couples.”