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New York's Big Day

The front cover of Donovan's Big Day by award-winning author of Mommy, Mama, and Me and Heather Has Two Mommies Lesléa Newman, with illustrations of Mike Dutton.

We were thrilled to see gay marriage pass in New York this weekend, just in time for the release of Lesléa Newman’s new book, Donovan's Big Day. Lesléa Newman is the author of the classic children's book Heather Has Two Mommies, which has helped a generation of childern see their families represented in the books they read. Her new book takes the work a step further by familiarizing the experience of watching one's parents get married. On her website, Newman writes:

One of the happiest days of my life was the day that Mary and I got legally married (on our 16th anniversary!). I wanted to write a book that captured all the joy of that day for children who have two moms who make a lifetime commitment to each other, whether their marriage is considered legal or not by the state in which they live.

Now all children in New York will, like Donovan, be able to see their parents get married. 

Lesléa Newman was recently chosen as a Jewish LGBT hero by Keshet, an organization dedicated to LGBT inclusion in the Jewish community and beyond. Their latest project is a poster series, inspired by JWA's Women of Valor posters, entitled “Here I Am” that features members of the Jewish LGBT community who have made a difference in the world. The first set of three posters are now available, featuring Lesléa Newman, Harvey Milk, and Kate Bornstein. Read more about the project in a wonderful post by Keshet's Bonnie Rosenbaum on the Moment Magazine blog.

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How to cite this page

Berkenwald, Leah. "New York's Big Day." 27 June 2011. Jewish Women's Archive. (Viewed on March 18, 2024) <http://jwa.org/blog/new-yorks-big-day>.