The Gender-Affirming Book You Need For Pride Month — EXCLUSIVE LOOK

Happy Pride month! One of the most meaningful ways to celebrate with our children is to educate them on all the many ways to be a human. Pride is so much about celebrating and accepting all the ways we can be different from each other. It Feels Good To Be Yourself: A Book About Gender Identity by Theresa Thorn is a must-read for Pride Month. This book is affirming AF. It's charming and reassuring and a perfect primer of all the ways we can feel and express gender, and Romper has the lowdown on the book, with an exclusive excerpt. You'll totally see what I mean when I say that this is the book to read when you begin to discuss gender with your child.

You might know the author Theresa Thorn from the hilarious parenting podcast "One Bad Mother," which she co-hosts with Biz Ellis. Thorn is no stranger to talking about the ins and outs of parenting, and this book also comes from a very personal place. She tells Romper, "This book would never have come about if it weren't for my eldest child, who came out as transgender at age 5 and has been living as her authentic self ever since. Thanks to her, I've spent more time reading, thinking, and talking about gender than I ever imagined I would."

But the book isn't just for the non-binary, trans, questioning, and fluid kids in our lives. It really is a book for every child.

"The conversations I've had about gender with my daughter, her friends, and her siblings, were the inspiration for this book," says Thorn. "All children have their own unique sense of their own gender and I love giving kids the opportunity to think about and treasure this aspect of themselves."

The book introduces us first to a transgender girl, and then her cisgender little brother. Any terms that might be unfamiliar to the child are clearly defined in the glossary at the back of the book. The language is clear and affirming within the pages, as well. Check out this spread , which introduces the term "non-binary."

Every illustration is packed with a diverse cast of characters, as you can see — no one will feel left out when they read this book, whether they have two dads, are disabled, or wear a hijab. The illustrations really make the celebratory nature of the book sing. The illustrator, Noah Grigni, is transgender, non-binary artist who loves to make art as "a celebration of queer love in its endless many forms," as they put it on their website. (Check out Grigni's Instagram for more loveliness.)

We have an exclusive excerpt, which highlights the spirit of joy and inclusiveness that this book positively overflows with. Breathe it in:

Everyone who reads this book with their children will be opening a door to an important conversation, and to a place where kids feel free to express themselves how they want and to question the rigid gender binary as they become increasingly aware of it.

Because there's no wrong way to be. And it really does feel good to be yourself.

It Feels Good To Be Yourself: A Book About Gender Identity is out on June 4 from Macmillan.