FAMILIES

A family scrapbook candidly portraying many contemporary families: straight and gay, single-parent and nuclear, divorced and blended, Jewish and Muslim, bi-cultural, first-generation immigrants and families with children who have special needs. In a prefatory note, the prolific photo-essayist explains her working method for this volume. She states that she let her young subjects take the lead on this project. They speak to the reader directly. They chose what family members would wear and what special objects would be included in the pictures. The children also selected special photos from their own family’s collections, including great-great-grandparents from Greece, a photo of an adopted boy from Sierra Leone in his home country and a traditional Japanese wedding picture with an American groom. The text is enlightening and amusing. Perfect for the ever-popular family curriculum unit that can also be shared at home. (Nonfiction. 6-9)