Meeting the challenge of a transgender child
In "Be Who You Are," a children's book starring a gender non-conforming child, Chicago writer Jennifer Carr tells the story of her family's support for her son when he announced he feels like a girl inside.
January 25, 2011|By Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz, Tribune Newspapers
http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2011-01-25/features/sc-fam-0125-transgender-child-20110125_1_hope-gender-family-therapyAt first, Jennifer Carr thought her son's taste for long wigs and princess dresses was little more than a passing phase.
But when Carr tried to steer the 4-year-old away from a pair of gaudy pink sandals while shopping for shoes, he burst into a tantrum so desperate she was taken aback.
Back in the car, Carr recalls, her son confided: "I have something to tell you. I feel like a girl inside. "
How she and her husband handled the announcement is the basis of Carr's new children's book, "Be Who You Are" (AuthorHouse, $20.99), the first in what she hopes is a series of children's books starring a gender nonconforming child.
