Should there be a dad?

crediblereading2 · Post by **crediblereading2** » 17 Jul 2018, 20:32

Yes, there should be a dad. I hope that a dad is introduced to the next part of this book .

kemp1kor · Post by **kemp1kor** » 17 Jul 2018, 22:27

I don't think a dad is necessary to the story, but as this is intended to be a series, maybe a father figure will appear in later installments.

crediblereading2 · Post by **crediblereading2** » 17 Jul 2018, 22:58

Every child needs a father, therefore, a father introduced in the story would be ideal.

Anon_Reviewer · Post by **Anon_Reviewer** » 18 Jul 2018, 03:20

I didn't even notice Dad was missing! Maybe because fathers being absent is a thing in a lot of communities.

All the more reason to include Dad, I guess. Great observation.

María Andrea Fernández Sepúlveda · 18 Jul 2018, 07:01

Maybe.
I know it´s an "ideal family" situation. And it could add some interesting ideas to the story, maybe different to what Toni does with his mom. It would definitely be great to see dad involved in the children´s lives. I don´t know if maybe the author was trying to be realistic? There are a lot of single/divorced moms or women in different living situations. And those kids deserve representation, too. Or maybe dad was just at work.

Christina Rose · Post by **Christina Rose** » 18 Jul 2018, 10:17

Jgideon wrote: ↑15 Jul 2018, 15:58 I agree that a dad is needed to make the story all-inclusive. It would also make it easier and more appropriate for fathers to read the story to their children.

While I think it would be great if a father-figure were included in one of the upcoming books, I don't think the exclusion of one makes it any less appropriate for a father to read this book to his child. I think my husband could read this book with our youngest son and get the same bonding experience that I would get while reading with him.

emkinney4 · Post by **emkinney4** » 18 Jul 2018, 10:22

The vast majority of books, movies, tv shows, etc. depict the "traditional family", but for a lot of kids, that's not reality. Growing up with divorced parents, I wish I was exposed to books with kids in the same situation so I could've seen that I wasn't the only one. For kids with only one parental figure in their life, or those who have nontraditional families in general, Toni's story could be a way of feeling more represented and less alone.

Christina Rose · Post by **Christina Rose** » 18 Jul 2018, 10:24

FictionLover wrote: ↑17 Jul 2018, 08:33 It's one of those things that you don't notice until someone mentions it.

I agree. I just didn't really think about the lack of a father-figure until this thread.

Sarah Starling · Post by **Sarah Starling** » 18 Jul 2018, 13:33

I would love to see a second parent, be it a dad or otherwise. I feel like a single mom contributes to racial stereotypes, so we need a second parent to help combat this in future stories.

Roggyrus · Post by **Roggyrus** » 18 Jul 2018, 21:27

I think the fact that Toni is without a dad stems from the desire of the writer to not alienate kids of single moms.

Ginnamassa19 · Post by **Ginnamassa19** » 19 Jul 2018, 23:34

Okay, I honestly think it would be really fun to have a Dad figure who could join in with the housework and daily chores and just break the stereotype that men don't have to help out around the house XD Although honestly, I think not having a dad there might also be an effort to represent single-parent families? Either way, it really depends on the person who reads the book with the child--reading this story together could be a very good way to to impart lessons about not discriminating against single-parent families, or to start a conversation about the dad's role in helping with the chores.

Joe Hadithi · Post by **Joe Hadithi** » 20 Jul 2018, 03:41

I have to admit, it did not hit me that there was no dad in the book and it took me reading this to realize that. That said, he would be a wonderful inclusion. Maybe he appears in the next book in the series, as part of a superhero family...

Laura Ungureanu · Post by **Laura Ungureanu** » 20 Jul 2018, 07:59

I think a father would have been a nice addition to the story. Too bad it missed that. I didn't notice, but now that I read this, it started to bother me.

amandathebibliophile · Post by **amandathebibliophile** » 20 Jul 2018, 10:53

While it's important to model family situations in which only one parent is present, dads are important too! I think both examples-- with and without a dad-- are representative of true life family situations. It could go either way for me.

Lynsyn · Post by **Lynsyn** » 21 Jul 2018, 02:44

I wouldn't mind if there was a dad presented in the book. But whether there is a dad or not, I do think that the story should portray that Toni is loved by his parent/s unconditionally and vice versa. There are a number of children who had one parent who took good care of them throughout their lives, and although they may be an incomplete family, what matters the most is that they still love each other through thick and thin. I'd like to see that kind of message in the next installments.