Topic: Banned Books Week — LGBT

And Tango Makes Three, by Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell (2005)

Since its release, "And Tango Makes Three" has consistently been a frequently challenged book.

This book is based on a true story about a penguin family living in New York City's Central Park Zoo. Roy and Silo, two male penguins, are "a little bit different." They cuddle and share a nest like the other penguin couples, and when all the other couples start hatching eggs, they want to be parents, too. Determined and hopeful, they bring an egg-shaped rock back to their nest and proceed to start caring for it. They have little luck, until a watchful zookeeper decides they deserve a chance at having their own family and gives them an egg in need of nurturing. The dedicated and enthusiastic fathers do a great job of hatching their funny and adorable daughter, and the three can still be seen at the zoo today. (PreSchool through Grade 3) --  Library Review

Examples of Challenges to And Tango Makes Three

2006

• Parents of students at Shiloh Elementary School in Shiloh, Illinois requested in November 2006 that the book be placed in a restricted section of the library and for the school to require parental permission prior to checking the book out. The school's superintendent resolved instead to keep the book freely available.
• Charlotte, North Carolina, the superintendent of Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools ordered the book removed from school libraries.

2007

'And Tango Makes Three' Prompts Serious Challenge in Massachusetts School  -- School Library Journal, 5/8/2007

• "A Southwick, MA, school librarian says she fears losing her job after introducing a class of second graders to And Tango Makes Three (S & S, 2005)—the fictionalized children’s picture book based on two real-life male penguins at New York’s Central Park Zoo. In the book, the penguins share a nest like other penguin couples and together nurture a fertilized egg, then raise the chick...

2008

• Loudoun County, Virginia, the Public Schools Superintendent removed the book from general circulation at public elementary school libraries on the basis of a parent's complaint, overriding the decision of a Sterling, Virginia school principal and staff members who deemed the book suitable for young readers.
• Calvert County, Maryland near Washington, D.C. a mother requested that the book be removed from the children's section and placed in an area specifically for books about "alternative or non-traditional families."
• Ankeny, Iowa, parents at the local elementary school asked that this book be placed in a restricted section of the library so only parents could check it out. The school district's lawyer argued that such a decision, if challenged, would likely not hold up in court. PEN America and the American Library Association sent letters urging to board to preserve students' access to Tango. The Ankeny school board voted 6 to 1 to keep the book in general circulation.

2012

• The book was marked for removal in the Davis, Utah School District because parents might find it objectionable.