The Lotteries More or Less
Summary:
This is the second book about a family with four parents, seven children, and many pets. The plot focuses on a big winter storm in Canada that throws the family’s plans into disarray: some family members are stranded abroad and can’t return home for winter celebrations, but there are plenty of distractions too as the family rally together with their neighbours to ensure everyone is safe during the storm. There is love, chaos, and fun in the story of this big and unusual family and their quest to make the world a nicer and better place for everyone.
Edited by: Dublin City University
Comment:
This novel about the Lottery family provides further insights into openness and inclusivity focused on the reimaging and representation of what a modern family can look like. There are two gay fathers and two lesbian mothers, biological and adopted children, a grandfather with dementia, and those beyond the family represented in couch-surfer Luiz, as well as their diverse community of neighbours. Children’s voices are given due weight and importance throughout, particularly notable in four-year-old Brian’s expression of their gender identity. The book explores multiculturalism through its focus on holidays and celebrations, acknowledging Christmas as just one celebration among a host of others. The book offers the reader an opportunity to think about the importance of community, through the working together that is required during the storm, and how such events impact different sectors of the community differently.