And Tango Makes Three

In the zoo there are all kinds of animal families. But Tango's family is not like any of the others.

At New York City's Central Park Zoo, two male penguins fall in love and start a family by taking turns sitting on an abandoned egg until it hatches.

In the zoo there are all kinds of animal families. But Tango's family is not like any of the others.

Publishers Weekly

Tango has two daddies in this heartwarming tale, inspired by actual events in New York's Central Park Zoo. Two male penguins, Roy and Silo, "did everything together. They bowed to each other.... They sang to each other. And swam together. Wherever Roy went, Silo went too.... Their keeper... thought to himself, `They must be in love.' " Cole's (The Sissy Duckling) endearing watercolors follow the twosome as they frolic affectionately in several vignettes and then try tirelessly to start a family-first they build a stone nest and then they comically attempt to hatch a rock. Their expressive eyes capture a range of moods within uncluttered, pastel-hued scenes dominated by pale blue. When the keeper discovers an egg that needs tending, he gives it to Roy and Silo, who hatch and raise the female. The keeper says, "We'll call her Tango,... because it takes two to make a Tango." Older readers will most appreciate the humor inherent in her name plus the larger theme of tolerance at work in this touching tale. Richardson and Parnell, making their children's book debut, ease into the theme from the start, mentioning that "families of all kinds" visit the zoo. This tender story can also serve as a gentle jumping-off point for discussions about same-sex partnerships in human society. Ages 4-8. (June) Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.

Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell are the authors of the award winning picture book And Tango Makes Three. Richardson is a psychiatrist on the faculty of Columbia and Cornell. Parnell is a playwright whose plays have been produced on and Off-Broadway. They live in New York City with their daughter, Gemma.

Peter Parnell is the co-author, with Justin Richardson, of And Tango Makes Three. Peter is a playwright whose plays have been produced at the Public Theater and Playwrights Horizons in New York City, the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles, and the Seattle Repertory Company, among others. His play QED was produced on Broadway. He has written extensively for televison as a producer for both The West Wing and The Guardian; he has also written episodes of Maurice Sendak's series Little Bear. He lives in New York City.

Henry Cole has illustrated more than fifty books for children, including And Tango Makes Three, Oink?, and Little Bo in France. A former elementary school teacher, he now writes and paints full time.