Recommended Titles/Sample Booklists:
Titles featuring GLBTQ characters show gay youth that they are not alone, and in addition to providing valuable and reliable information can also bring to life inspirational characters for GLBTQ youth to look up to. For many GLBTQ teens, books are a lifeline of sorts, and high quality, realistic titles that avoid clichés, and steer clear of oversimplifying the challenges facing GLBTQ teens, are what to look for when developing your library's collection.
Hillias J. Martin's and James R. Murdock's wonderful book: Serving Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Questioning Teens: A How-to-do-it Manual f0r Librarians does a fantastic job of compiling a comprehensive (though no means exhaustive) list of titles across various GLBTQ-topics. Most importantly though, these are titles proven to be compelling and relevant to GLBTQ teens or non-GLBTQ teens wanting to learn more about their GLBTQ counterparts. I have reproduced select lists below, as a quick guide to jumpstarting your library's GLBTQ teen collection!!!!
*-= denotes the author's recommended picks for a GLBTQ core collection
"TEN BOOKS IF YOU CAN ONLY HAVE TEN LGBTQ BOOKS IN YOUR LIBRARY
Annie on My Mind, by Nancy Garden*
Boy Meets Boy, by David Levithan*
Dangerous Angels: The Weetzie Bat Books, by Francessca Lia Block*
From the Notebooks of Melanin Sun,by Jacqueline Woodson*
The Full Spectrum: A New Generation of Writing about Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, Questioning and Other Identities, ed. by David Levithan and Billy Merrill*
Geography Club, by Brent Hartinger*
Hard Love, by Ellen Wittlinger*
GLBTQ: The Survival Guide for Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, and Questioning Teens - 2nd Edition, by Kelly Huegel*
Luna: A Novel, by Julie Anne Peters*
Rainbow Boys, Rainbow High, Rainbow Road, by Alex Sanchez*"
"FICTION FOR BOYS WHO LIKE BOYS: THE GAY TEEN MALE PROTAGONIST
Absolutely, Positively Not..., by David LaRochelle*
Boy Meets Boy, by David Levithan*
Clay's Way, by Blair Mastbaum*
Geography Club, by Brent Hartinger*
The Hookup Artist, by Tucker Shaw*
Leave Myself Behind, by Bart Yates*
Rainbow Boys, Rainbow High, Rainbow Road, by Alex Sanchez*
A Really Nice Prom Mess, by Brian Sloan*
A Tale of Two Summers, by Brian Sloan*
The World of Normal Boys, by K.M. Soehnlein*"
"FICTION FOR GIRLS WHO LIKE GIRLS: THE LESBIAN TEEN PROTAGONIST
Annie on My Mind, by Nancy Garden*
The Bermudez Triangle, by Maureen Johnson*
Dare Truth or Promise, by Paula Boock*
Deliver Us from Evie, by M.E.Kerr*
Keeping You a Secret, by Julie Anne Peters*
Kissing Kate, by Lauren Myracle*
Kissing the Witch: Old Tales in New Skins, by Emma Donague
Hard Love, by Ellen Wittlinger*
The House You Pass on the Way, by Jacqueline Woodson
Orphea Proud, by Sharon Dennis Wyeth*"
"FICTION WITH BISEXUAL CHARACTERS
Geography Club, by Brent Hartinger*
Empress of the World, by Sara Ryan*
'Hello,' I Lied, by M.E. Kerr
Lucky, by Eddie Oliveira*
My Heartbeat, by Garret Freymann-Weyr*
Pretty Things, by Sara Manning*
Postcards from No Man's Land, by Aidan Chambers*"
"FICTION WITH TRANS, CROSS-DRESSING, OR ANDROGYNOUS CHARACTERS
Born Confused, by Tanuja Desai Hidier
Boy Meets Boy, by David Levithan*
Boy2Girl, by Terrence Blacker
The Flip Side, by Andrew Matthews
Luna: A Novel, by Julie Anne Peters*
Missing Angel Juan (Dangerous Angels: The Weetzie Bat Books), by Francesca Lia Block
Postcards from No Man's Land, by Aidan Chambers*
Rainbow Road, by Alex Sanchez*
The Realm of Possibility, by David Levithan*
'The Welcome' by Emma Donague (a short story in Michael Cart's Love & Sex anthology)
What Happened to Lani Garver? by Carol Plum-Ucci*
What Night Brings, by Carla Trujillo"
"FICTION FOR QUESTIONING TEENS
The Bermudez Triangle, by Maureen Johnson*
Far from Xanadu, by Julie Anne Peters
My Heartbeat, by Garret Freymann-Weyr*
The Perks of Being a Wallflower, by Stephen Chbosky*
Postcards from No Man's Land, by Aidan Chambers*
Pretty Things, by Sara Manning*
Sexy,by Joyce Carol Oates
So Hard to Say, by Alex Sanchez*"
"FICTION FOR STRAIGHT TEENS WHO HAVE QUEER FRIENDS
Absolutely, Positively Not..., by David LaRochelle*
The Bermudez Triangle, by Maureen Johnson*
Dangerous Angels: The Weetzie Bat Books, by Francessca Lia Block*
Getting It, by Alex Sanchez
The Hookup Artist, by Tucker Shaw*
The Misfits, by James Howe
Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist, by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan*
The Perks of Being a Wallflower, by Stephen Chbosky*
Pretty Things, by Sara Manning*
Shrimp, by Rachel Cohn*
Sorcerers of Nightwing, by Geoffrey Huntington
A Tale of Two Summers, by Brian Sloan*"
"QUEER YA CLASSICS STILL IN PRINT
Am I Blue? Coming Out from the Silence, ed. by Marion Dane Bauer*
Annie on My Mind, by Nancy Garden*
The Arizona Kid, by Ron Koertge
Deliver Us from Evie, by M.E.Kerr*
Eight Seconds, by Jean Ferris
Jack, by A. M. Holmes*
Night Kites, by M.E. Kerr
Peter, by Kate Walker
Dangerous Angels: The Weetzie Bat Books, by Francessca Lia Block*"
"AWARD-WINNING QUEER YA FICTION
Am I Blue? Coming Out from the Silence, ed. by Marion Dane Bauer*
Annie on My Mind, by Nancy Garden*
Boy Meets Boy, by David Levithan*
Dangerous Angels: The Weetzie Bat Books, by Francessca Lia Block*
Deliver Us from Evie, by M.E.Kerr*
Dream Boy, by Jim Grimsely
From the Notebooks of Melanin Sun, by Jacqueline Woodson*
Keesha's House, by Helen Frost
My Heartbeat, by Garret Freymann-Weyr*
Postcards from No Man's Land, by Aidan Chambers*
A Really Nice Prom Mess, by Brian Sloan*
So Hard to Say, by Alex Sanchez*"
"NONFICTION: LGBTQ LIFE
The Advocate College Guide for LGBT Students, by Shane L. Windmeyer
GLBTQ: The Survival Guide for Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, and Questioning Teens - 2nd Edition, by Kelly Huegel*
The Full Spectrum: A New Generation of Writing about Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, Questioning and Other Identities, ed. by David Leviathan and Billy Merrill*
Growing Up Gay in America: Informative and Practical Advice for Teen Guys Questioning Their Sexuality and Growing Up Gay, by Jason Rich
How It Feels to Have a Gay or Lesbian Parent: A Book by Kids for Kids of All Ages, by Judith E. Snow
Kings & Queens at the Prom, by David Boyer*
Love Makes a Family: Portraits of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Parents and Their Families by Gigi Kaeser, photographer, and Peggy Gillespie, ed.
Queer Facts: The Greatest Gay and Lesbian Trivia Book Ever, by Michelle Baker and Stephen Tropiano
Revolutionary Voices: A Multicultural Queer Youth Anthology, ed. by Amy Sonnie
When I Knew, ed. by Robert Trachtenberg*"
"QUEER FANTASY AND SCI-FI BOOKS
Bending the Landscape, ed. by Nicola Griffeth
Kissing the Witch: Old Tales in New Skins, by Emma Donague
Swordpoint, by Ellen Kushner"
"GRAPHIC NOVELS
Les Bijoux series, by Eun-Ha Joe and Park Sang Sun
Cardcaptor Sakura series, by Clamp
Eerie Queerie series, by Shuri Shiozu*
Enigma, by Peter Milligan
Green Lantern: Brother's Keeper, by Judd Winick
Pedro and Me, by Judd Winick
Potential, Awkward, and Definition by Ariel Schrag
Sailor Moon series, by Naoko Takeuchi
Shade the Changing Man, by Peter Milligan
Stuck Rubber Baby, by Howard Kruse"
"BOOKS ABOUT SEX AND SEXUALITY
Changing Bodies, Changing Lives: A Book for Teens on Sex and Relationships, by Ruth Bell
GLBTQ: The Survival Guide for Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, and Questioning Teens - 2nd Edition, by Kelly Huegel*
The Lesbian Health Book: Caring for Ourselves, by Jocelyn White and Marissa Martinez
Love and Sex: 10 Stories of Desire, ed. by Michael Cart
The Underground Guide to Teenage Sexuality, by Michael J. Basso"
"MEMOIRS AND BIOGRAPHIES WRITTEN FOR YA AUDIENCES
Adrienne Rich, by Amy Sickles, (Chelsea House series)
Allen Ginsberg, by Neil Heims, (Chelsea House series)
Andy Warhol: Prince of Pop, by Jan Greenberg and Sandra Jordan
James Baldwin, by Randall Kenan, (Chelsea House series)
James Baldwin: Voice from Harlem, by Ted Gottfried
Oscar Wilde, by Jeff Nunokawa, (Chelsea House series)
Sappho, by Jane McIntosh Snyder, (Chelsea House series)
Talking in the Dark: A Poetry Memoir, by Billy Merrell*
Walt Whitman, by Arnie Kantrowitz, (Chelsea House series)
Young, Black,and Determined: A Biography of Lorraine Hansberry, by Patricia C. McKissack and Fredrick L. McKissack"
"PERIODICALS
The Advocate*
www.oasismag.com
Out
XY
YGA"
"FILMS/TELEVISION
Beautiful Thing*
Boys Don't Cry
Boys Life series
Brokeback Mountain
But I'm a Cheerleader
The Celluloid Closet
Edge of Seventeen
Hedwig and the Angry Inch
The Incredibly True Adventure of Two Girls in Love*
The Laramie Project
The Lost Language of Cranes
Ma Vie en Rose
The Times of Harvey Milk
Wild Reeds
Buffy the Vampire Slayer*
Dawson's Creek
The L-Word
My So-Called Life*
Queer as Folk
Queer Eye for the Straight Guy
Will & Grace"
Source:
Martin Jr., Hillias J. and James R. Murdock. Serving Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Questioning Teens: A How-to-do-
it-Manual for Librarians. New York: Neal Schulman Publishers, Inc., 2007. Print.
Titles featuring GLBTQ characters show gay youth that they are not alone, and in addition to providing valuable and reliable information can also bring to life inspirational characters for GLBTQ youth to look up to. For many GLBTQ teens, books are a lifeline of sorts, and high quality, realistic titles that avoid clichés, and steer clear of oversimplifying the challenges facing GLBTQ teens, are what to look for when developing your library's collection.
Hillias J. Martin's and James R. Murdock's wonderful book: Serving Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Questioning Teens: A How-to-do-it Manual f0r Librarians does a fantastic job of compiling a comprehensive (though no means exhaustive) list of titles across various GLBTQ-topics. Most importantly though, these are titles proven to be compelling and relevant to GLBTQ teens or non-GLBTQ teens wanting to learn more about their GLBTQ counterparts. I have reproduced select lists below, as a quick guide to jumpstarting your library's GLBTQ teen collection!!!!
*-= denotes the author's recommended picks for a GLBTQ core collection
"TEN BOOKS IF YOU CAN ONLY HAVE TEN LGBTQ BOOKS IN YOUR LIBRARY
Annie on My Mind, by Nancy Garden*
Boy Meets Boy, by David Levithan*
Dangerous Angels: The Weetzie Bat Books, by Francessca Lia Block*
From the Notebooks of Melanin Sun,by Jacqueline Woodson*
The Full Spectrum: A New Generation of Writing about Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, Questioning and Other Identities, ed. by David Levithan and Billy Merrill*
Geography Club, by Brent Hartinger*
Hard Love, by Ellen Wittlinger*
GLBTQ: The Survival Guide for Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, and Questioning Teens - 2nd Edition, by Kelly Huegel*
Luna: A Novel, by Julie Anne Peters*
Rainbow Boys, Rainbow High, Rainbow Road, by Alex Sanchez*"
"FICTION FOR BOYS WHO LIKE BOYS: THE GAY TEEN MALE PROTAGONIST
Absolutely, Positively Not..., by David LaRochelle*
Boy Meets Boy, by David Levithan*
Clay's Way, by Blair Mastbaum*
Geography Club, by Brent Hartinger*
The Hookup Artist, by Tucker Shaw*
Leave Myself Behind, by Bart Yates*
Rainbow Boys, Rainbow High, Rainbow Road, by Alex Sanchez*
A Really Nice Prom Mess, by Brian Sloan*
A Tale of Two Summers, by Brian Sloan*
The World of Normal Boys, by K.M. Soehnlein*"
"FICTION FOR GIRLS WHO LIKE GIRLS: THE LESBIAN TEEN PROTAGONIST
Annie on My Mind, by Nancy Garden*
The Bermudez Triangle, by Maureen Johnson*
Dare Truth or Promise, by Paula Boock*
Deliver Us from Evie, by M.E.Kerr*
Keeping You a Secret, by Julie Anne Peters*
Kissing Kate, by Lauren Myracle*
Kissing the Witch: Old Tales in New Skins, by Emma Donague
Hard Love, by Ellen Wittlinger*
The House You Pass on the Way, by Jacqueline Woodson
Orphea Proud, by Sharon Dennis Wyeth*"
"FICTION WITH BISEXUAL CHARACTERS
Geography Club, by Brent Hartinger*
Empress of the World, by Sara Ryan*
'Hello,' I Lied, by M.E. Kerr
Lucky, by Eddie Oliveira*
My Heartbeat, by Garret Freymann-Weyr*
Pretty Things, by Sara Manning*
Postcards from No Man's Land, by Aidan Chambers*"
"FICTION WITH TRANS, CROSS-DRESSING, OR ANDROGYNOUS CHARACTERS
Born Confused, by Tanuja Desai Hidier
Boy Meets Boy, by David Levithan*
Boy2Girl, by Terrence Blacker
The Flip Side, by Andrew Matthews
Luna: A Novel, by Julie Anne Peters*
Missing Angel Juan (Dangerous Angels: The Weetzie Bat Books), by Francesca Lia Block
Postcards from No Man's Land, by Aidan Chambers*
Rainbow Road, by Alex Sanchez*
The Realm of Possibility, by David Levithan*
'The Welcome' by Emma Donague (a short story in Michael Cart's Love & Sex anthology)
What Happened to Lani Garver? by Carol Plum-Ucci*
What Night Brings, by Carla Trujillo"
"FICTION FOR QUESTIONING TEENS
The Bermudez Triangle, by Maureen Johnson*
Far from Xanadu, by Julie Anne Peters
My Heartbeat, by Garret Freymann-Weyr*
The Perks of Being a Wallflower, by Stephen Chbosky*
Postcards from No Man's Land, by Aidan Chambers*
Pretty Things, by Sara Manning*
Sexy,by Joyce Carol Oates
So Hard to Say, by Alex Sanchez*"
"FICTION FOR STRAIGHT TEENS WHO HAVE QUEER FRIENDS
Absolutely, Positively Not..., by David LaRochelle*
The Bermudez Triangle, by Maureen Johnson*
Dangerous Angels: The Weetzie Bat Books, by Francessca Lia Block*
Getting It, by Alex Sanchez
The Hookup Artist, by Tucker Shaw*
The Misfits, by James Howe
Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist, by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan*
The Perks of Being a Wallflower, by Stephen Chbosky*
Pretty Things, by Sara Manning*
Shrimp, by Rachel Cohn*
Sorcerers of Nightwing, by Geoffrey Huntington
A Tale of Two Summers, by Brian Sloan*"
"QUEER YA CLASSICS STILL IN PRINT
Am I Blue? Coming Out from the Silence, ed. by Marion Dane Bauer*
Annie on My Mind, by Nancy Garden*
The Arizona Kid, by Ron Koertge
Deliver Us from Evie, by M.E.Kerr*
Eight Seconds, by Jean Ferris
Jack, by A. M. Holmes*
Night Kites, by M.E. Kerr
Peter, by Kate Walker
Dangerous Angels: The Weetzie Bat Books, by Francessca Lia Block*"
"AWARD-WINNING QUEER YA FICTION
Am I Blue? Coming Out from the Silence, ed. by Marion Dane Bauer*
Annie on My Mind, by Nancy Garden*
Boy Meets Boy, by David Levithan*
Dangerous Angels: The Weetzie Bat Books, by Francessca Lia Block*
Deliver Us from Evie, by M.E.Kerr*
Dream Boy, by Jim Grimsely
From the Notebooks of Melanin Sun, by Jacqueline Woodson*
Keesha's House, by Helen Frost
My Heartbeat, by Garret Freymann-Weyr*
Postcards from No Man's Land, by Aidan Chambers*
A Really Nice Prom Mess, by Brian Sloan*
So Hard to Say, by Alex Sanchez*"
"NONFICTION: LGBTQ LIFE
The Advocate College Guide for LGBT Students, by Shane L. Windmeyer
GLBTQ: The Survival Guide for Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, and Questioning Teens - 2nd Edition, by Kelly Huegel*
The Full Spectrum: A New Generation of Writing about Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, Questioning and Other Identities, ed. by David Leviathan and Billy Merrill*
Growing Up Gay in America: Informative and Practical Advice for Teen Guys Questioning Their Sexuality and Growing Up Gay, by Jason Rich
How It Feels to Have a Gay or Lesbian Parent: A Book by Kids for Kids of All Ages, by Judith E. Snow
Kings & Queens at the Prom, by David Boyer*
Love Makes a Family: Portraits of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Parents and Their Families by Gigi Kaeser, photographer, and Peggy Gillespie, ed.
Queer Facts: The Greatest Gay and Lesbian Trivia Book Ever, by Michelle Baker and Stephen Tropiano
Revolutionary Voices: A Multicultural Queer Youth Anthology, ed. by Amy Sonnie
When I Knew, ed. by Robert Trachtenberg*"
"QUEER FANTASY AND SCI-FI BOOKS
Bending the Landscape, ed. by Nicola Griffeth
Kissing the Witch: Old Tales in New Skins, by Emma Donague
Swordpoint, by Ellen Kushner"
"GRAPHIC NOVELS
Les Bijoux series, by Eun-Ha Joe and Park Sang Sun
Cardcaptor Sakura series, by Clamp
Eerie Queerie series, by Shuri Shiozu*
Enigma, by Peter Milligan
Green Lantern: Brother's Keeper, by Judd Winick
Pedro and Me, by Judd Winick
Potential, Awkward, and Definition by Ariel Schrag
Sailor Moon series, by Naoko Takeuchi
Shade the Changing Man, by Peter Milligan
Stuck Rubber Baby, by Howard Kruse"
"BOOKS ABOUT SEX AND SEXUALITY
Changing Bodies, Changing Lives: A Book for Teens on Sex and Relationships, by Ruth Bell
GLBTQ: The Survival Guide for Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, and Questioning Teens - 2nd Edition, by Kelly Huegel*
The Lesbian Health Book: Caring for Ourselves, by Jocelyn White and Marissa Martinez
Love and Sex: 10 Stories of Desire, ed. by Michael Cart
The Underground Guide to Teenage Sexuality, by Michael J. Basso"
"MEMOIRS AND BIOGRAPHIES WRITTEN FOR YA AUDIENCES
Adrienne Rich, by Amy Sickles, (Chelsea House series)
Allen Ginsberg, by Neil Heims, (Chelsea House series)
Andy Warhol: Prince of Pop, by Jan Greenberg and Sandra Jordan
James Baldwin, by Randall Kenan, (Chelsea House series)
James Baldwin: Voice from Harlem, by Ted Gottfried
Oscar Wilde, by Jeff Nunokawa, (Chelsea House series)
Sappho, by Jane McIntosh Snyder, (Chelsea House series)
Talking in the Dark: A Poetry Memoir, by Billy Merrell*
Walt Whitman, by Arnie Kantrowitz, (Chelsea House series)
Young, Black,and Determined: A Biography of Lorraine Hansberry, by Patricia C. McKissack and Fredrick L. McKissack"
"PERIODICALS
The Advocate*
www.oasismag.com
Out
XY
YGA"
"FILMS/TELEVISION
Beautiful Thing*
Boys Don't Cry
Boys Life series
Brokeback Mountain
But I'm a Cheerleader
The Celluloid Closet
Edge of Seventeen
Hedwig and the Angry Inch
The Incredibly True Adventure of Two Girls in Love*
The Laramie Project
The Lost Language of Cranes
Ma Vie en Rose
The Times of Harvey Milk
Wild Reeds
Buffy the Vampire Slayer*
Dawson's Creek
The L-Word
My So-Called Life*
Queer as Folk
Queer Eye for the Straight Guy
Will & Grace"
Source:
Martin Jr., Hillias J. and James R. Murdock. Serving Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Questioning Teens: A How-to-do-
it-Manual for Librarians. New York: Neal Schulman Publishers, Inc., 2007. Print.