Big hearted, bold and beautiful. For any parent who knows there is no “right way.”

Gus Skattebol-James had just turned 10 when he appeared in the award-winning Australian film Gayby Baby, a hugely popular documentary about growing up with same-sex parents.

Despite the controversy surrounding Gayby Baby’s release, with calls from some commentators leading to the PG Gayby Baby being banned in NSW schools, audiences across the country fell in love with Gus’s story and his undying passion for wrestling.

Now Gayby Baby director Maya Newell and producer Charlotte Mars have joined forces with Gus again to create a very lovable picture book about going against the grain and following your passions – even when both of your mums disagree!

‘What makes a family? Is it biology? Living together? A surname? Community? Or is it something you feel? Whatever shape your family takes, we believe you should see it celebrated and reflected in the world. We hope this book is another step forward in reaching that goal.

Wrestle! was inspired by the 2015 documentary Gayby Baby, which featured the stories of four incredible kids, each being raised in LGBTQIA+ families.

One of those kids was Gus. He’s now 17. The book comes after a decade of fighting for same-sex marriage in Australia and the world. But the work of expanding the conversation around family, sexuality and gender is by no means over.

As we move beyond the narrative of the same-sex marriage debate, it’s a time to tell even more complex stories about who we are and how we live.

These stories are the connective thread between major legislative change and the everyday behaviours that make our society more accepting. They are a gateway to new ideas and new ways of seeing. To fighting less. To loving more.’

Kids being raised by same-sex couples are growing in numbers worldwide. The documentary, Gayby Baby, asked who are these kids? What do they think about growing up as a gayby? And what are the unique issues they face?

Inspired by Gus’s story in the documentary, Wrestle! is about Gus’s dreams of being a wrestler and how this affects his family.

‘Big hearted, bold and beautiful. For any parent who knows there is no “right way” to make a family, and for any kid who knows there is no “right way” to be yourself.’
– Benjamin Law

Gus LOVES wrestling. There’s only one thing he loves more than wrestling and that’s Mardi Gras when he and his sister get to dress up and parade through the streets with their mums while everyone cheers.

So, when his mums ban him from wrestling because it’s too violent, he ingeniously works out a way to combine his two loves and win over his mums again.

Inspired by a true story, Wrestle! is a funny story about love, identity and the joys of playing dress up. A book for families everywhere.