🟢 Kid Lit Book Review: Rainbow Parade by Emily Neilson

The Rainbow Parade by Emily Neilson

Book Review by Emma Ball,

Edited by Zapoura Newton-Calvert

“The sidewalk outside is filled with people waiting for the parade to start. Everyone is wearing whatever makes them feel most like themselves.”

RATING: 🟢 Recommended

The Rainbow Parade by Emily Neilson, a representation of the author’s own experiences going to gay pride parades with her parents as a child, shows the inclusiveness, love, and pride that is present at every Gay Pride parade.  This story of a little girl with two lesbian parents going on a train to the parade and the illustrations, showing different crowds of queer people and other parade-goers, offer an idea into how accepted a child could feel when attending the celebration.

The illustrations are bright and colorful. The drawings of the little girl herself, happy on the train and in the parade, with a smile and in the arms of her mothers provides positive imagery for both kids and parents alike.  Queer people have experienced endless discrimination throughout the years, and a book showing how fun, accepting, and full of support a pride parade can be for both children understanding their own sexuality, as well as adults who want to experience a sense of community, is very beneficial. 

Neilson describes the parade as a place where people can be themselves in any way they want, with rainbow clothing, big colorful hair, and even a celebration of the naked body. Overall, this book provides children with a representation of a place they can go to feel accepted in their own sexuality and gender identity. It emphasizes the sense of community and love that is often present at a pride parade. 

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ABOUT THE REVIEWER

REVIEWER BIO :Emma is a student writer working with Zapoura Newton-Calvert as part of Portland State University's UNST 421: Social Justice in K12 Education course, a partnership with Reading Is Resistance.