My Princess Boy by Cheryl Kilodavis

by Hannah Crawford

My Princess Boy is the true story of a four-year-old boy who loves traditional girl things, like sparkly dresses and the color pink. The author is his mother, Cheryl Kilodavis, whose writing expresses her love for her son, her acceptance of who he is, and her hope that others will treat him with the respect and compassion he deserves.

Kilodavis is not naive. She doesn’t pretend that it will always be easy for her son. She writes about when he was laughed at when he dressed up as a princess for Halloween and when he wanted to buy a pink purse at the store, and how much that hurt them both. But she takes the pain that they both felt in those situations, and uses it as a call to everyone to accept people’s differences.

Don’t worry, though, the book is not as heavy as I’ve made it sound. Given how close the topic is to her heart, Kilodavis takes it seriously, but her words are tender and light. She is helped by illustrations by Suzanne DeSimone. They feature the Princess Boy and his friends and family dancing and playing across the pages, against a backdrop of pink skies and rolling green hills.

This book is a great teaching tool for ages 4-8. Whether your child is a boy or girl, and interested in things traditionally assigned to their gender, the opposite gender, or whether they like both dresses and sports, this will help start a discussion of how to love one another.

The Princess Boy was published in 2009 by Aladdin, an imprint of Simon & Schuster.