non-binary | Lost in a Good Book

Peanut Goes for the Gold by Jonathan Van Ness

Published: 31 March 2020
Publisher: HarperCollins
Illustrator: Gillian Reid
Pages: 32
Format: Picture Book
★ ★ ★ ★ – 4 Stars

Peanut Goes for the Gold is a charming, funny, and heartfelt picture book that follows the adventures of Peanut, a gender nonbinary guinea pig who does everything with their own personal flare.

Peanut just has their own unique way of doing things. Whether it’s cartwheeling during basketball practice or cutting their own hair, this little guinea pig puts their own special twist on life. So when Peanut decides to be a rhythmic gymnast, they come up with a routine that they know is absolutely perfect, because it is absolutely, one hundred percent Peanut.

This upbeat and hilarious picture book, inspired by Jonathan’s own childhood guinea pig, encourages children to not just be themselves–but to boldly and unapologetically love being themselves.

This is a fun story that explores doing your own thing and being proud of it. Peanut is presented as a non-binary character and uses they/their pronouns. I loved that the story wasn’t about Peanut’s identity, and we see all the wonderful things they can do instead.

The story describes the seemingly strange things Peanut does like having banana pancakes instead of birthday cake and cutting their hair while hula-hooping but soon moves on to their dreams of competing in gymnastics competition. Reid’s illustrations are adorable and I loved seeing Peanut in their gymnastics costume and practising all over the place.

Peanut’s unflappable nature is also endearing. They don’t mind others thinking they’re weird, in fact their friends end up joining them in their activities. It’s also a great build up to the end where quick thinking and stylish flair save the day. It’s a story of success and passion all wrapped up in adorable illustrations.

Van Ness has also come out as non-binary and it’s wonderful to see more picture books exploring different identities and offering more representation. If you ignore the pronouns this could be any other picture book and that’s brilliant. The more books that are around with representation that isn’t the focus of the book is just what we need.

You can purchase Peanut Goes for the Gold via the following

QBD | Booktopia | Book Depository

Dymocks | Wordery | Angus and Robinson

Fishpond | Amazon | Amazon Aust

My Maddy by Gayle E. Pitman

Published: 25th May 2020
Publisher: Magination Press
Illustrator: Violet Tobacco
Pages: 32
Format: Picture Book
★ ★ ★ ★ – 4 Stars

Most mommies are girls. Most daddies are boys. But lots of parents are neither a boy nor a girl. Like my Maddy.

My Maddy has hazel eyes which are not brown or green. And my Maddy likes sporks because they are not quite a spoon or a fork.

Some of the best things in the world are not one thing or the other. They are something in between and entirely their own.

I was so glad to discover this book because while there are a growing number of picture books about trans kids and parents, I was curious about whether the non-binary community were given representation as well.

The story is incredible sweet, it’s a gentle slow read about a young child and their “Maddy”, a person who is presented as non-binary. I loved the opening line about how most mummies are girls and most daddies are boys because right away it already opens up the acknowledgement of a gender spectrum on parents.

Many elements of Maddy are a mixture; their eyes, their hair, a combination of two different things coming together to make them who they are. It’s not only Maddy’s appearance though, Pitman frequently uses the ‘in-between’ to show that wonderful things don’t have to be one thing or another and the spaces between can be their own beautiful thing.

Tobacco’s illustrations are great and I loved the use of colour, especially recognisable colours of the non-binary flag in Maddy’s clothes as well as pride slogans and posters around the house. The full page illustrations are full of bright colours and I love how Maddy and our child narrator are shown interacting with the world around them – their expressions, their actions, and even the unique angles and perspectives of the pictures are interesting.

This is a great story about a loving family and their unique look at the world of in-between spaces and how many things are neither one thing or another if you look closely enough.

You can purchase My Maddy via the following

Booktopia | Book Depository

Dymocks | Angus and Robinson

Fishpond | Amazon | Amazon Aust