Ann Arbor Jewish Book Festival Program

VIRTUAL PROGRAM

With Author Jeff Bender, Oh, I Just Didn’t Know and Apparel Has No Gender and Author A.J. Sass, Camp Quiltbag

7:00 PM over Zoom

Apparel Has No Gender

When Jeff Ben­der’s child Court­ney, who was assigned male at birth, asked for her first dress at one and a half years old, all Jeff saw was the smile and delight on his child’s face. Lit­tle did he know that he and his fam­i­ly were about to embark on a jour­ney of learn­ing, growth and accep­tance that would include issues sur­round­ing cloth­ing, bath­rooms, and sports teams.

Par­ent­ing in today’s world is chal­leng­ing, but par­ent­ing a gen­der-non­con­form­ing or gen­der-ques­tion­ing child can be con­fus­ing as well. Jeff opens up about his fam­i­ly’s expe­ri­ences with hon­esty and com­pas­sion, detail­ing the strug­gles and joys of par­ent­ing two gen­der-flu­id chil­dren. Along with his own sto­ry, Jeff shares the view­points of oth­er par­ents, grand­par­ents, and even his own wife.

Appar­el Has No Gen­der also pro­vides guid­ance for par­ents want­i­ng to learn more about gen­der iden­ti­ties and expres­sion. Any par­ent will ben­e­fit from Jef­f’s lessons on how to grow in under­stand­ing and par­ent with uncon­di­tion­al love and support.

Camp Quiltbag

Twelve-year-old Abi­gail (she/​her/​hers) is so excit­ed to spend her sum­mer at Camp Quilt­bag, an inclu­sive retreat for queer and trans kids. She can’t wait to find a com­mu­ni­ty where she can be her­self — and, she hopes, admit her crush on that one hot old­er actress to kids who will understand.

Thir­teen-year-old Kai (e/​em/​eir) is not as excit­ed. E just wants to hang out with eir best friend and eir park­our team. And e def­i­nite­ly does not want to think about the inci­dent that left eir arm in a sling — the inci­dent that also made Kai’s par­ents deter­mined to send em some­where e can feel like emself.

After a bit of a rocky start at camp, Abi­gail and Kai make a pact: If Kai helps Abi­gail make new friends, Abi­gail will help Kai’s cab­in with the all-camp com­pe­ti­tion. But as they nav­i­gate a sum­mer full of crush­es, queer iden­ti­ty explo­ration, and more, they learn what’s real­ly impor­tant. Camp Quilt­bag is a heart­felt sto­ry full of the joy that comes from being and lov­ing yourself.

About the Authors

Jeff Ben­der is the father to two of the most incred­i­ble kids in the world. He and his wife have been mar­ried since 2005 and reside in the St. Louis area. Jeff found­ed The Lion and The Owl, a com­pa­ny cre­at­ing a com­mu­ni­ty for LGBTQ+ youth to feel safe in while nor­mal­iz­ing the idea of gen­der-neu­tral cloth­ing. The Lion and the The Owl’s mis­sion is to sup­port and cel­e­brate inclu­siv­i­ty and diver­si­ty among our youth through appar­el, com­mu­ni­ty, and education.

 A. J. Sass is an author, edi­tor, and com­pet­i­tive fig­ure skater. He is the author of Ana on the Edge and Ellen Out­side the Lines as well as a con­trib­u­tor to This Is Our Rain­bow: 16 Sto­ries of Her, Him, Them, and Us anthol­o­gy. He cur­rent­ly lives in the San Fran­cis­co Bay Area with his partner and their pets.