Jacob's Room to Choose-and our Book to Choose

According to Fran Wilde in the article, “Three children’s authors on the importance of tough topics in young people’s literature,” “Children’s literature has a long history of engaging with tough topics in small and large ways and wrapping them up in adventure” (washingtonpost.com).  Sarah and Ian Hoffman’s picture book, Jacob’s Room to Choose, is no exception. The story follows Jacob and Sophie, two gender non-conforming children, as they go about their day at school. Jacob is introduced as a young boy (according to the pronouns used in the story) who is stereotypically “girly” toting a blonde bob and a green dress, while his friend, Sophie, sports a bouffant Afro and wears khakis and a button-down shirt. When we first read Jacob’s Room to Choose, we thought it was perfect. It challenges gender binaries, so really, what more could we ask for?

Just a bit more. Maybe?

Although choosing to address the issue of gender non-conforming bathrooms in a children’s picture book is an amazing idea, the forced assumptions at the beginning of the book detracts from its overall purpose. The story begins with “Jacob and Sophie loved library time.” (n.p.) The names, however, do not match how the children are arranged in the beautifully rendered illustration by Chris Case. The reader is forced to assume that Jacob is on the left and Sophie is on the right because the names are ordered that way. However, the accompanying image shows Sophie lying on the left and Jacob lying on the right. This misleading pattern continues for a few more pages: “Jacob and Sophie raised their hands (Sophie is again on the reader’s left side and Jacob is on the right).” “Sophie walked through one door./ Jacob took a deep breath and walked through the other.” (n.p.) This time Jacob stands on the left facing the sign that indicates the restroom for boys and Sophie stands on the right side facing the opposite sign. Rather than allowing the reader to make the mistake of mis-identifying the children themselves, the text is arranged in such a way that forces this assumption on the reader. This seems like a missed opportunity for the reader, especially the adult reader, to challenge their own assumptions about gender norms.

One thing Sarah and Ian Hoffman do incredibly well is they refuse to give Jacob a pronoun until the sixth page of the book when Jacob walks into the boys’ restroom: “Two boys were at the sinks. They stared at Jacob standing in the doorway. Jacob knew what that look meant. He turned and ran out.” With the first time Jacob is called “he”, we are provided with the insight that this is not the first time that Jacob has felt uncomfortable going to the boys’ restroom.

This key moment in the restroom can be a very small glimpse into the challenges gender non-conforming children and adults alike may face every day. The author is forced to give Jacob a pronoun when Jacob is within the boys’ restroom, faced by two other boys. Just “that look” is a moment that pulls at us. Jacob knows what “that look” is, he has faced this situation before and appears to be fearful, as he runs out with “his heart pounding”. In this moment, any gender non-conforming person can probably relate to Jacob’s intense fear in this moment.

Later, Ms. Reeves’s activity and subsequent discussion leads Jacob and Sophie’s classmates to consider their own assumptions about where they fit and where the rules say they fit. Ms. Reeves draws a picture of a boy and girl on the board and then asks the question, “‘Are these pictures of what boys and girls really look like?’” the children’s responses vaguely introduces the possibility of non-binary thinking:

“Yes,” said Emily.

“No,” said Sophie.

“Sometimes,” said Jacob. (n.p.)

Emily, who rejects being placed in the boy’s group because she’s wearing pants, still does not understand fully the limitations of strict gender rules outlined in Ms. Reeves’s exercise. Sophie, who rejects performing stereotypical gender norms, gives a different answer. Jacob’s answer, however, offers a third option when he responds, “‘Sometimes,’” (n.p.).

Mike Cadden tells us that “Regardless of the way that a YA novel represents the consciousness of the young adult--by character narration or by external narration that focalizes through young characters--it can produce double-voicedness” (148). In much the same way, Sarah and Ian Hoffman control Jacob’s consciousness in his narrative to create this double-voicedness that both tells what happened and presents a moral. The moral--children like Jacob should be allowed to use whatever restroom they are comfortable using--comes through clearly. However, Jacob’s sadness about not being able to choose is faint and relegated to the background of the story. In the author’s note, Sarah and Ian Hoffman discuss their son, Sam and the purpose behind the picture book. In kindergarten, Sam had waist length hair and loved wearing a pink dress (n.p.). While this author’s note explains the purpose this book, points to a known issue in literature written by adults for children.

They go on to say, “Sam’s interests were a mix of traditional ‘girl’ things like ballet, make-believe, and art, mixed with traditional ‘boy’ things like knights, castles, and dinosaurs, Clinically, children like Sam are called gender-nonconforming; we liked to call him a pink boy--the male equivalent of a tomboy” (n.p.). As soon as we read the author’s note, we began to feel wary about the wording. This reduction of their child to a clinical definition and immediately casting Sam out as “not a traditional boy,” though most likely not intentionally, enforces a gender binary. Sam wears dresses, therefore; he is immediately categorized as an “other” instead of simply a child.

(SS)

(KT)

Works Cited

Hoffman, Sarah, and Ian Hoffman. Jacob's Room to Choose. Magination Press, 2019.

Cadden, Mike. “The Irony of Narration in the Young Adult Novel.” Children's Literature Association Quarterly, Johns Hopkins University Press, 1 Jan. 2009, muse.jhu.edu/article/249865/pdf.

Wilde, Fran. “Three Children’s Authors on the Importance of Tough Topics in Young People’s Literature.” The Washington Post, 9 Apr. 2019, www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/2019/04/09/three-childrens-authors-importance-tough-topics-young-peoples-literature/?utm_term=.7bda654513fe.