This book was just so, so wonderful on every level. It is valuable towards anyone who works with children. It is written in a very accessible way, and this is a book I will be adding to my professional library without a doubt.


Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press, St. Martin's Griffin for the chance to read this book!

A really excellent resource for parents, educators, and caregivers, this guide goes into tactical, definitions, vocabulary, and ways to make your home and classroom more inclusive.

Rainbow Parenting is a really special book. It is organized by developmental stage and was easy to follow and gain new information from. The language and framing is accessible to readers of all backgrounds and level of information. I feel like I had some of the background but learned so many new ideas and concepts. I am raising a kid in a state that is passing hateful anti-LGBTQ legislation and it feels really scary to not be able to have control over his safety and environment. This book offered me hope and solace that there is a new tool for us. Here’s to raising kids with unconditional love and positive regard toward their identities!

5⭐️ guide to parenting children who are part of the rainbow community / how to be an overall good human being.

This book is a plentiful resource with age appropriate discourse around many topics. The book is spilt into sections (Infancy, Toddlers, Pre-K, and Elementary Aged/4+).

This book is not just about LGBTQ issues, though. It also teaches about many other issues like consent, age-relevant sex ed, treating our bodies with kindness, different kinds of families, and intersectionality (racism, disability, mental health, religion etc.).

A must read for anyone wanting to raise activists of Social Justice in their communities! I will be purchasing a physical copy to keep on my shelf and reference in my parenting and to recommend to clients as a social worker.

Thank you to Net Galley and St. Martin's Press for an e-arc in exchange for my honest review.

Thanks to Netgalley for this advance reader copy. This book is well needed and I will be recommending it to a lot of my colleagues. The days of identifying your gender are starting to diminish. The process of feeling like you have to, as the author explains only causes turmoil. This is an excellent book with great information, and it should be on everybody’s bookshelf..

This is a very comprehensive book, and one that is a great resource for any parent, teacher, or childcare worker. I appreciated the book recommendations as well. Thank you to Netgalley for the advanced copy of this book for review!

Rainbow Parenting; Your Guide to Raising Queer Kids and Their Allies by Lindz Amer was such an important read for me! I love how Amer approaches parenting and really felt my hand being held throughout the book, as if a dear friend was chatting with me! An amazing book that belongs on every library shelf! I felt so lucky to get a copy for myself! I have shared on my goodreads, bookstagram, and booktok!

Finally! A book for those of us who are desperate to get it right and not cause further detriment to our children (because society will do that all on their own)!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's for an ARC in exchange for an honest review! This is a great book to be read in conjunction with other developmental resources for not only new/expecting families, but also educators and caregivers. Amer even gives some other good resources in the back. It's a resource which can be used to also bring children up in a family which is not only trying to be affirming, but also actively anti-racist, anti-ableist, and anti-bigotry in general because a lot of the scripts used for explaining concepts can be tweaked from their LGBTQ+ context to fit a myriad of scenarios! Some of the key takeaways are: Early sex ed and boundary setting is abuse prevention, representation matters in media even 1 year olds consuming (are there people of different colors? genders? abilities? family structures?), getting to the underlying question kiddos are actually wanting the answer to is always better, and never as abstract as adults think it is (e.g. where do babies come from? why does that girl use those sticks [referring to my crutches I often use as a disabled person])?. They debunk several stigmas with great statistics surrounding sexuality and cultural biases we may bring to the table with those assumptions.

A couple things to be aware of: The author themselves are neurodivergent and so while the book is meant to be read in a "linear way", there are a lot of tangents reminiscent to my spouse's own neurodivergent brain. It's not a value judgement, just a stylistic thing to be aware of as a reader. They come back around at the end of each chapter with some key takeaways that keep things easily accessible. While they give a lot of good, credible, resources to back up a lot of claims, there are also a few instances where the author makes statements meant to be taken as /fact/, but are actually /opinions/ (which I don't even necessarily disagree with all of them) based on their moral/value system. So it's important for you readers to approach with critical thought processes at work to discern what's fact, what's an opinion of your own echo chamber of thought but you possibly agree with, and what may be opinion worth looking further into before reaching a thought/conclusion of your own.

A quick skim through read that is something I may find myself needing to get a physical copy of to get more use from.

This book appeared in my life at exactly the right time. I plan to start my own family in the coming years and I have been very conscious about how I plan to parent. My husband and I talk about what we think our do's and don'ts will be when we have kids, and body ownership/consent, gender identity, and sexuality are all very important topics we discuss.

This book does a great job at explaining important information without being condescending or making the reader feel as though they have already made a mistake-- almost as if they are taking their own advice and "talking below the doorknob" to their audience. The amount of information I was learning and sharing with my husband along the way was outstanding.

Another important facet of this book to me what the fact that it wasn't geared just towards parents but also educators and caregivers alike. I am currently a special education teacher and concepts of boundaries, consent and body ownership come up regularly in my day-to-day. I will be happy to incorporate some of the ideals in this book in my current classroom setting.

A really important read that I will reference for years to come!

I absolutely loved this book and am so grateful I was able to read this early thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan. I am happy to see more parenting content that is focused on creating a better more inclusive world for all. A must read for parents.

One of the most common complaints I hear from my parenting cohort (which is mostly GenXers though I am a millennial 5-10 years their junior) is that “I didn't grow up with this, I am lost as to what to do or say.” If we take that at face value and imagine that it is a good-faith request for help, then this book is a great answer to that issue. With friendly, accessible primers on the ways that parents can be inclusive and supportive at all ages and stages, this book will be so helpful for parents raising children in what feels like a big new world. Even though my LGBTQIA+ children are teenagers now with a bevy of queer family and friends, this book had so much to offer about how we treat children in regards to consent, gender-identity and age-appropriate sexuality. As an added layer, the book treats the readers/parents with the kindness that it is recommending for the children they are raising. The entire text is a treatise on compassion and empathy that is much needed for LGBTQIA+ youth as well as their parents and allies. This is how we raise good humans and support families in doing so.

The highest praise I can offer: I am officially adding this to my gift list for expectant parents.

Published by: St. Martin’s Press Release Date: 30 May 2023

This is an excellent read for anyone wondering about appropriate talks with younger children. Or anyone wondering about bias, the harm that accidental or casual bigotry or phobias can cause, and how to do better in life. If you’re already and ally or comrade, welcome to the read that reminds you to check your privilege and remember that we can always learn more. If you’re just starting out in your journey through child rearing or interactions with kids, or even curiosity about inclusivity and acceptance for all age ranges, this is definitely a good place to start, too!

Sure, it’s uncomfortable at times. But so is life. It’s meant to be. As clearly described in these pages, running from discomfort and diversity means that you’re doomed to perpetuate the cycles of phobic and anti behavior. And if you’re hoping to be that one trusted person for anyone in your life, things need to be reevaluated. But that’s okay. It’s how we learn and grow and change ideas along the way. We can all find something to be proud of or improve upon here, but we’re not berated for it. And we can all learn better ways to speak about our LGBTQ+ friends, family, and fellow humans to children here also. No matter if they’re babies or school aged, appropriate suggestions for how to broach subjects are given, and I think just about everyone could at least enjoy the opportunity for self reflection and awareness here.