Author Vicki Johnson came to writing late in life. When her debut picture book, Molly’s Tuxedo, came out last year, it was an important milestone in her career.
The story of a little girl who wants to wear a tuxedo for picture day at school was immediately praised for its depiction of a gender-nonconforming main character, landing it on the American Library Association’s (ALA) Rainbow Project Book List.
Johnson toured at festivals and at bookstores, but she was particularly excited for the school year to roll around to go on her first school visit, which serendipitously was scheduled for National School Picture Day.
The timing couldn’t have been better, and Johnson’s local independent bookstore had even donated 240 copies of the book, one for each student.
Then, at the last minute, the visit was canceled. Johnson was told to pick up her books and was offered little explanation. But she could guess the reason: someone had taken issue with the LGBTQIA+ theme of her story.
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