Let's Get This Straight: The Ultimate Handbook for Youth with LGBTQ Parents

Author(s): Tina Fakhrid-Deen

Parenting & Pregnancy | LBGTQ | Relationships | Relationships | Young Adult

Let’s Get This Straight reaches out to young people with one or more gay, lesbian, bi, or trans parents to provide them with the tools to combat homophobia, take pride in their alternative family structures, and speak out against injustice.


This short but thorough book profiles forty-five diverse youth and young adults, all of whom voice their opinions and provide advice for other youth living in LGBTQ households.


Let’s Get This Straight also includes probing questions, fun activities, engaging quizzes, and reflective journal sections for youth to share their feelings and experiences about having a gay parent. By reading this book, readers will learn how to: identify and overcome barriers to having a gay parent; address discrimination and heterosexism; build a strong self-esteem and sense of belonging; communicate effectively with their parents and individuals outside of the LGBTQ community; access resources and support for their families; respond effectively when challenged about being in a sexual minority family; and reduce the isolation, fear, shame, and confusion that can be associated with having gay parents. As the media brings ever-increasing exposure to gay-headed households, this book is more important than ever.


Let’s Get This Straight is the perfect blend of wit, sharing of experiences, and “expert” advice that children with LGBTQ parents need to become more self-aware and affirming, and to maintain healthy relationships with their parents.


Product Information

'This book is written for youth with a parent(s) that is lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or questioning. Its purpose is informational, as well as introspective and affirming. It is a resource for youth who are questioning what LGBTQ means to them and their everyday life. There are seven chapters focusing on a range of topics, from family dynamics, school, and social issues to religion and activism. Many issues within the chapter topic are discussed in a straightforward manner. Each issue is highlighted for easy reference. At the end of the chapter, there is either intentional blank space to journal or guided questions to answer. Quizzes add to the interactive feel. Youth and adults who were interviewed by the author share their experiences in their own words in a section called "Our Voices." These quotations, as well as original poetry, add to the feeling of community. The author has personal knowledge of this subject and is affiliated with COLAGE, a group for youth with LGBTQ parents. The book will be insightful for educators, as well as parents and young adults.' --Lori Guenthner Voya

'An active-learning approach separates this handbook from an assortment of other books about children with LGBTQ parents. Its seven chapters cover familiar topics such as families' coming out, acceptance, bullying, and religion. Fakhrid-Deen provides sound information interspersed with interviews, poetry, questionnaires, and pages for journaling. In addition, the fact that 44 people ages 8–36 were interviewed for the book, and that 57 percent "identified as biracial, multiracial, or persons of color," also sets it apart from others on the subject, such as Abigail Garner's Families Like Mine (HarperCollins, 2004) and Judith E. Snow's How It Feels to Have a Lesbian or Gay Parent: A Book by Kids for Kids of All Ages (Harrington Park, 2004). The book includes a glossary of terms in the introduction as well as a good list of resources in the final chapter on activism. While the invitation to write in the book may not be ideal for a library setting, resourceful librarians and teachers will find a way to maximize the book's potential.'—Betty S. Evans, Missouri State University, Springfield. School Library Journal

General Fields

  • : 9781580053334
  • : Seal Press
  • : Seal Press
  • : books

Special Fields

  • : Tina Fakhrid-Deen
  • : PAPERBACK