Lesbian and Gay Rights

School Library Journal

Gr 7 Up--Interracial Marriage explores issues arising from such unions, with the focus mostly on African-American/Caucasian couples. While the authors believe that character is more important than color, they do not gloss over potential problems, and provide an excellent summary of factors that have shaped cultural attitudes. Different Worlds (Watts, 1989) by Janet Bode uses an interview format to discuss aspects of this topic. Literacy is presented clearly and deliberately, explaining what functional illiteracy means to those confronting the tasks of everyday life. Of interest are chapters on teaching methods and the development of scales for measuring reading ability. McCauslin is a passionate advocate of Lesbian and Gay Rights , viewing their struggles as parallel to the earlier battles of blacks and women. He includes a timely discussion of homosexuals in the military. Readers need not agree with the entire book to be sympathetic to the efforts for equality that are described. Some may be annoyed with the awkward structure; a teen who witnesses a gay pride parade appears at the beginning of the book and at the end, when most readers will have forgotten her. Also distracting is the casting as monsters those who seem to stand in the way of equal rights; one-dimensional characters are neither believable nor interesting. Much about these three titles has merit. Some of the full-color photos are touching, but many are simply fillers, and a lot of the captions don't accurately reflect or describe them. --Libby K. White, Schenectady County Public Library, NY