Non-sexist Children's books

[PitstopPrice]

I'm really keen to show my 3-year-old daughter a range of role models and also to avoid the default-is-male mindset that most children's books promote. So, if anyone can recommend any books with female dinosaurs (which are not simply mums looking after babies, important as that role obviously is), maybe a female lion or tiger, that sort of thing, that would be great. Also, books with female farmers / doctors / etc. And books with the dads (successfully) taking care of the kids / cooking the dinner / etc. All recommendations appreciated!

Have you checked the website 'a mighty girl', OP? Lots of recommended titles on there.

Thanks for the tip! Will check it out...

bitchmagazine.org/post/how-do-you-find-feminist-childrens-books

Here is a link to an article you might find useful. Good luck.

Zog by Julia Donaldson has a princess who wants to be a doctor.

This thread, www.mumsnet.com/Talk/adult_nonfiction/753589-Key-feminist-texts-for-me-to-read-and-leave-lying , includes children's books.

There are also recommendations here: www.mumsnet.com/Talk/womens_rights/934538-Children-39-s-books-which-promote-gender-equality

And here: www.mumsnet.com/Talk/womens_rights/1572598-Ideas-for-books-for-my-DDs-with-strong-female-characters

I love Zog!

I'm very fond of the paper bag princess. Go Elizabeth. You're right. Prince Ronald IS a toad!

I agree, the paper bag princess is great. Princess pigsty is good too. Elena's serenade is beautiful.

And books with non-gendered characters I tend to call "she" as well when I'm pointing things out

Sophie and the Shadow Woods series? Although probably for 7+ year olds!

A lovely new book is Marmaduke the very different dragon. It's got a princess in it, BUT she's very cool and doesn't care what anyone thinks about her. My DS's love it!

We have a book called big red bath that has dad doing bath time and mum coming in at the end looking like she is just home from work.

I loved The Paper Bag Princess when I was little. Elizabeth was awesome.

I liked Princess Smartypants too, who didn't want to get married. Can't remember how it ended, so she might have found her prince, but she had very exacting, unusual, standards.

A Day with the Animal Doctors is about Dr Tapir taking her son to see a day at her work, a very jolly hospital where the staff and patients are all animals. There are male nurses too.

Rosie's Hat has a little girl who grows up to be a fire fighter.

DD is just 4 and for a long time has just adored The Worst Princess. And I love it too.

I second Britchic's nomination for Marmaduke - it was a CBeebies bedtime story recently and we really enjoyed it.

Feel your pain, PitstopPrice - I've been looking for picture books with strong female lead characters for my 2yo daughter. Boys have Fireman Sam and Bob the Builder (good practical jobs that achieve or create something) but girls seem to mainly have princesses, fairies, mermaids and unicorns - things you can't actually be when you grow up. She likes Dora the Explorer but even she doesn't do a lot of exploring (and there are still unicorns!). Small children form their views of the world from the things we tell them/read them, and I often wonder if some of the gender-stereotyped books we read them plant seeds in their subconscious minds that girls can't be builders, firefighters, pilots, doctors, engineers... and then years down the line we all bemoan the fact that too few women go into science and technology. I'll check out all the links above to see if they fill what I think is a big void in the children's book market. Thanks!

Come Away from the water Shirley and Time to get out of the bath Shirley by john Burningham are very good.

The trouble with Mum by babette Cole is very good, and the Trouble with Gran is good too. princess Smartypants by the same author is another good one.

some of Janet and Allan Ahlberg's Happy families series feature women in non traditional roles - mrs plug the plumber is a good one, and Miss jump the Jockey.