Gay books for teens
Books I Wish I’d Examine as an LGBTQ Teenager
By Amy Gall
Originally posted on LitHub, Rally 7, 2016
When I was young, the only literature I could find about lesbians was either deeply tragic or short on character and long on formulaic, anatomically incorrect sex scenes (I’m looking at you, Xena Warrior Princess fanfiction). It wasn’t until I graduated college that I found a guide which actually spoke to my experience. Dorothy Allison’s short story collection Trash made me feel seen in a way I had never imagined possible and didn’t even know I needed. Her characters had sex that was visceral and messy and embarrassing. They had jobs and families and pasts. They spoke in a language that was sensual and irate and true. Quite simply, the characters in Trash were lesbians and fully realized human beings. Reading about them made me realize how starved I was for reminders of my own humanity.
This February, in partnership with Lambda Literary, The National Novel Foundation launched BookUp LGBTQ at the Hetrick-Martin Institute taught by award winning poet t’ai freedom ford. BookUp LGBTQ is based on our already thriving national reading program, BookUp, in which published autho
34 Books That Make Gay Teens Feel Seen
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Quill Tree Books "They Both Die at the End" by Adam Silvera
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In They Both Depart at the End, Mateo Torrez and Rufus Emeterio both receive some worst news on the alike day: that it's their last day alive. The pair are total strangers, but are looking to make a new confidant on their "End Day." Mateo and Rufus join on an app called The Last Friend and endure a new adventure of living a lifetime in a single evening. all while falling for each other.
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Harper Teen "It's Not Like It's a Secret" by Misa Sugiura
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Two star-crossed girls of color collapse in love in this magical and easy-to-love childish adult novel. Told through the lens of 16-year-old Sana, whose family moves to California as her parents go through their own trials, this coming-of-age story is impossible to put down.
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Wednesday Books "I Kissed Shara Wheeler" by Casey McQuiston
Now 47% Off
I Kissed Shara Wheeler is the latest emit by Red, White, and Royal Blue author Casey McQuiston. It follows Chloe Green, a star pupil who's on
Welcome to Queer Books for Teens!
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This website seeks to be a comprehensive list of all LGBTQIAP+ YA titles published between 2000 and 2020. It includes all major and indie US presses and selective self-published material. This website is not meant to act as a list of book recommendations, although we provide leading of lists for those who seek recommendations. These lists were commissioned from experts who share that identity and feature what they felt were the best representations that specific set of identities.
When looking at the filters you may notice that there are fewer published books for certain types of representation, especially books representing characters with multiple marginalized identities, for example queer people of dye, queer Muslims, queer people with disabilities and more. We hope that seeing the reality of these numbers encourages publishers to seek out and publish more titles that depict the intersections of marginalized identities, especially when those titles are #ownvoices. If you have titles for us to add, please contact us!
Please check out our updates and changes page to see what we are working on and how we hav
LGBTQ+ Inclusive Fiction for Tweens, Teens and Young Adults (12+)
I’ve always enjoyed reading teen fiction, more so nowadays now that I’m in my thirties. As well as the reality that protagonists and characters are more diverse, I just find the stories easier to consume.
As we mentioned in our recent post about our favourite fiction for younger readers, books like Me, My Dad and the Finish of the Rainbow are fantastic reads, even for us adults. Not only are the stories amusing and easy to digest, but I could quit the book for a while and easily choose it up where I left off. Without even having to re-read a chapter or two appreciate I would have had to with more individual books!
Whilst T is way off getting into the same books that I’m currently reading, it’s not a bad thing having a couple ready for when the time comes. Plus, I still really enjoy reading them! With this in mind, I’ve put together a list of a few of my favourites so far. Not only that, I recently asked a couple of our followers on Twitter for some recommendations and here’s what they suggested…
Please note: This content contains Amazon affiliate links, which means I’ll get a few pennies for each purchase made through them. How
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