GORDON THE GIRAFFE

Bruce Brown, A. Shelton (illustrations)

Reviewed by Mel Keegan 

Is it nature, or nurture, that fetches a stubborn vein of prejudice into each new generation of kids growing up in a world where being gay still carries a significant risk factor?

I’ve always believed it’s nurture: that prejudice against other human beings, whether for their color, the sexual inclination, their spiritual choice, is learned on the lap of a parent or elder. Was it Kipling who said, “Give me a child’s first six years; you can have the rest,” by which he meant, the morals and ethics that will govern a lifetime – either making or breaking it – are instilled in the first few years of human existence. What we learn on the parental lap will mold who we become, how comfortable we’ll be living inside our own skins in 30 years’ time, how we’ll treat other people … and expect to be treated in return.

The idea of reaching out to touch fresh, young minds with the concepts of tolerance, compassion, understanding, is a powerful thought; but when the tolerance and compassion are turned toward gay people, it’s not an idea that’s been widely explored – though not for want of trying. Time and again, gay books written for kids have been censored out of existence, banned from library shelves, ignored by distributors. So the courage and initiative to give it another shot deserves applause from all in this community – and I’d like to direct your attention to a new picture book from Arcana, Gordon the Giraffe, by Bruce Brown, illustrated by A. Shelton.

The work is designed for young kids: this is not a coming of age or coming out story. It addresses the critical moment in the development of the young child where boys and girls head off in different directions … play different games on different teams, in different clothes, for different motivations. There are games you play only with your mates, and games you play only with the opposite sex, though at this tender age one remains extremely uncertain as to why it has to be this way. In fact, it’s the uncertainty factor on which Gordon the Giraffe pivots: who says two lads can’t play a game that’s traditionally been played only by a boy and a girl?!

That pivot point of uncertainty is the fork in the path. Nine kids in ten automatically take the path more trodden (or, run with the herd, if you will). But a great many kids who would naturally choose the path less trodden, are forced to run with the herd because they’re told they must.

And hereby hangs the tail:

Gordon lives with his mother in the hidden kingdom of Ugladunga. Every day, the adult giraffes gather on the other side of the waterfall, but the kids meet to play the game Mulunga Doo in pairs: one boy and one girl. When Gordon is asked to play the game by Gary, the other young giraffes laugh at them and ask Gordon if he is a girl. Hurt, Gordon flees to his mother who tells him that he must follow his heart. The next day, the boy giraffes plan to teach Gordon a lesson, but their plan backfires, and Gordon must save them from plummeting down the waterfall. In the end, Gordon teaches the other boy giraffes that they should love everyone -- even those who are different from themselves.

At face value it’s a simple story, but behind it is a world of meaning. Kids will see only the story itself – which is presented in big, easy-to-read print and simple language, accompanied by charming illustrations. Parents will see beyond the story to the real gist. It’s about having the freedom to choose, to be who we are – or want to be, when we grow up, at any rate. It’s about parents having the courage (not to mention the decency) to respect their kids’ choices and not try to force them into alien roles. And the gentle subtext points out that gay people can be, and have been, among history’s greatest heroes … that bravery is not a specifically heterosexual quality. Lastly, the “little villains” of this story learn a tough lesson when they’re rescued from disaster by the kid they all laughed at, and the hope is that the story will dissuade tomorrow’s bullies, before they can get their teeth into similar teasing.

In a perfect world, parents would be buying Gordon the Giraffe for their kids as a kind of prep work, opening the door to the freedom of choice which would be invaluable to them when they reach the age where the choices must be made. Alas, prejudiced parents won’t be buying this book … but I wonder if more free-thinking aunts, uncles and friends might pick up the slack? And for the many kids whose parents are more tolerant, Gordon will help to pave the way to an easier transition into a gay adolescence which (knock on wood) will be happy, positive, and painless.

Gordon the Giraffe is rated G,

52pp, full color throughout,

published by Arcana.

ISBN: 9781927424537