Teddy's Favorite Toy, by Christian Trimmer

I was so skeptical of this book - we once read a book about a boy who preferred to wear dresses and I think it had the opposite of its intended effect.  My son went from thinking that there was absolutely nothing unusual about a boy wearing a dress, to being a bit suspicious based on the reactions of all the children in the book.

This book is at the same time subtle and straightforward in addressing the fact that Teddy's favorite toy is a doll.  It starts by noting that Teddy has lots of cool toys such as a fire engine he can ride on (my son was blown away by this), a rocket ship, puzzles, a hula hoop . . . but his favorite one is a doll named Bren-Da, Warrior Queen of the Pacific.  Bren-Da enjoys a tea party and dressing up but also has the "sickest fighting skills."  When Teddy's mom accidentally throws away Bren-Da while cleaning his room, his mom uses all of Bren-Da's various talents (manners, cool moves!) to rescue Bren-Da from the garbage truck.  All in all, a pretty perfect introduction to a boy who just happens to love his doll.

In addition to all of the wonderfulness above, Teddy is a child of color and, if you choose, can be read as either adopted or biracial (his mom is the only parent pictured and appears to be white).

BUY HERE (or request at your local library!)