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Original poster

Inappropriate kids boo for Christmas

54 replies

PearlCritic · 15/12/2024 22:21

My neighbours invited us over for a Christmas drink and gave my 4 year old daughter Juno Dawson’s children’s book You Need to Chill as a Christmas gift. To summarise it’s a picture book showing a little girl missing her brother and looking for him only for him to reappear as her ‘sister’ at the end. I hadn’t seen the book when it was gifted and my husband read it at bedtime for my 6 year old son and my daughter without realising the content. It’s the second time we have ended up inadvertently having kids books pushing gender ideology at bedtime (the other from the library) mainly because my husband hasn’t been vetting what he’s reading but also how is it this hard to avoid for kids this young? The neighbours are really lovely and the wife who would have picked the gift is an early childhood educator so while I want to believe it was an accidental pick, can I ignore the strange content? What would you do?

I can’t seem to edit the title, should say book not boo

OP posts:
UtopiaPlanitia · 15/12/2024 22:31

Given the wide and varied range of subject matter in kids books, this particular book topic seems like a rather specific choice. I wouldn’t buy a book dealing with a sensitive topic like that for a friend’s child because, to me, that topic in a book aimed at very young children feels a bit proselytising.

If you don’t want to keep the book don’t feel you have to. And perhaps have a chat with your husband about paying more attention to the books he chooses to read as this topic doesn’t seem to be on his radar at the moment.

Gagagardener · 15/12/2024 22:28

I'd 'lose' the book - and if asked tell both DD and neighbours that it had gone missing, but that it wasn't a very interesting story. I'd also educate my husband.

Circumferences · 15/12/2024 22:26

Other than just quietly drop the book off at a charity shop, I wouldn't do anything.
You don't want to start a political divide with someone you like.
I'd definitely see them in a different light though.

WomensSports · 15/12/2024 22:26

I'd probably do exactly what I do when anyone pushes unwanted ideology on me, i.e. when MIL gives the kids JW religious books, which is to just bin it and never speak of it again. If it became a persistent thing with repeated "gifts" from the same person pushing the gender ideology I'd say something like, "we don't believe in pushing gender ideology on children".

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