Kids and Families

Gay and Lesbian Issues: Books for Young Teens

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Stories

Am I Blue?: Coming Out from the Silence
What do you think the world would look like if everyone who had a gay feeling turned the color blue for a day? Vince finds out when he gets a visit from his "fairy godfather" in one story from this collection of stories about lesbian and gay teenagers.

Love & Sex: Ten Stories of Truth

Ten stories explore the ups and downs of love and sex.

Novels

Gravel Queen by Tea Benduhn

All Aurin wants to do the summer before her senior year in high school is hang out with her friends Kenny and Fred, but when she falls in love with Neila, everything changes.

Weetzie Bat by Francesca Lia Block
Can two best friends find love in Shangri-L.A.? Weetzie and Dirk have many misadventures before Weetzie's wish comes true and they each find their own true love.

My Heartbeat by Garret Freymann-Weyr

As she tries to understand the closeness between her older brother and his best friend, 14-year-old Ellen finds her relationship with each of them changing.

Annie on My Mind by Nancy Garden
Liza never knew how wonderful falling in love could be, or how confusing. Then she met Annie.

Good Moon Rising by Nancy Garden

Jan begins her senior year of high school not expecting that she will lose the starring part in the school play, take over as director when her beloved drama teacher becomes ill, and realize that she is a lesbian.

Geography Club by Brent Hartinger

A group of lesbian and gay teenagers find mutual support when they form a "geography club" at their high school.

The Order of the Poison Oak by Brent Hartinger

In this sequel to Geography Club, Russel hopes to escape high school gossip by working at a peaceful summer camp far from home. The intensity of camp life strains his old friendships, but skinny dipping, a forest fire, and a special group of campers will make this an unforgettable summer.

Deliver Us from Evie by M. E. Kerr
Evie has always known she's different. Now the whole town knows it too.

Now That I Know by Norma Klein
Nina's parents are divorced. She spends half of the week with her Mother and the other half of the week with her Dad at the apartment that he shares with his friend Greg. Then Nina finds out that Greg and her Dad are more than "just friends" and she doesn't know what to do now that she knows.

Boy Girl Boy by Ron Koertge

Elliot, Teresa and Larry, best friends since forever, plan to run away to California after graduation. Gay, straight, shy, cynical, angry, happy, confused - can three people so different really stay friends?

My Most Excellent Year: A Novel of Love, Mary Poppins, and Fenway Park by Steve Kugler

Three Boston teenagers narrate their life experiences through emails, letters, IM chats and websites in this unique story of new friendships, first loves, and coming of age.

Absolutely, Positively Not by David LaRochelle

Steven isn't gay. Lots of 16-year-old boys enjoy square dancing and study International Male catalogues for grooming tips, right? Just in case, Steven decides to macho up with his new plan of Healthy Heterosexual Strategies: hang out with jocks, date pretty girls, and learn to belch.

Boy Meets Boy by David Levithan

In a community with a cross-dressing star quarterback/homecoming queen, Joy Scouts, and cheerleaders on motorcycles, nothing can get in the way of Paul finding his true love - if he can just make up his mind who it is.

Sonny's House of Spies by George Ella Lyon

There are too many secrets in Sonny's family, and he decides to find out once and for all why his father left town so long ago.

Kissing Kate by Lauren Myracle

Sixteen-year-old Lissa"s relationship with her best friend changes after they kiss at a party, and Lissa doesn't know what to do - until she gets help from an unexpected new friend.

M or F? A Novel by Lisa Papademetriou

Marcus tries to hook up his best friend Fran with her crush by IMing him on the school's closed chat room - without Fran's knowledge. As they chat more and more, Marcus begins to think that Jeffrey might like him as Marcus, and not just as Frannie-Marcus.

Love Rules by Marilyn Reynolds

Seventeen-year-old Lynn experiences surprise, discomfort, and a new awareness of prejudices and stereotyping when her best friend Kit comes out as a lesbian.

Saints of Augustine by Patrick Ryan

In St. Augustine, Florida, former best friends Charlie Perrin and Sam Findley, now both sixteen, came to realize that their friendship is the only thing that will keep them afloat when each of their worlds is turned upside down by death.

Empress of the World by Sara Ryan

Nic knows she's attracted to guys - until she meets a girl who steals her heart. The sequel is The Rules for Hearts.

Rainbow Boys by Alex Sanchez

Three high school seniors, a jock with a girlfriend and an alcoholic father, a closeted gay, and a flamboyant gay rights advocate, struggle with family issues, gay bashers, first sex, and conflicting feelings about each other.

So Hard to Say by Alex Sanchez

As the new kid in eighth grade, Frederick is glad when Xio, a chatty Latina, befriends him. But they both start to wonder - why doesn't he want to be her boyfriend?

The Hookup Artist by Tucker Shaw

Lucas is a matchmaker and his services are in high demand at his high school. He decides a new student, Derek, is perfect for Lucas' best friend, Cate. But when Lucas also finds himself falling for Derek and gets mixed signals, Licas must make some decisions about love and friendship.

Peter by Kate Walker
15-year-old Peter is sick of the pressure from his friends to get a girl- "any girl"-but life gets tougher when he realizes he is attracted to his brother's friend David.

The House You Pass on the Way by Jacqueline Woodson

When fourteen-year-old Staggerlee, the daughter of a racially mixed marriage, spends a summer with her cousin Trout, she begins to question her sexuality to Trout and catches a glimpse of her possible future self.

 

Nonfiction

Two Teenagers in Twenty: Writings by Gay and Lesbian Youth
These true-life stories from gay and lesbian teens tell it like it is.

Understanding Sexual Identity: A Book for Gay Teens and Their Friends
What makes a person gay? What makes a person straight? This book has some of the answers.

When Someone You Know Is Gay by Susan & Daniel Cohen
Practical advice on how to be a friend to someone who is gay.

Bend, Don't Shatter: Poets on the Beginning of Desire
These poems are about longing, wanting, and starting to find out who you are - whoever you are.

Hear Me Out: True Stories of Teens Educating and Confronting Homophobia: A Project of Planned Parenthood of Toronto

Teens of different cultures and backgrounds tell their own stories about being different.

GLBTQ: A Survival Guide for Queer and Questioning Teens by Kelly Huegel

This book describes the challenges faced by gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender teens, and offers practical advice and accessible resources.

The Full Spectrum: A New Generation of Writing about Hay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, Questioning, and Other Identities edited by David Levithan

This book includes real people - gay, lesbian, bisexual, straight, transitioning and questioning - telling real stories about: coming out, family, friendship, religion/faith, first kisses, breakups, and many others.

Please, Don't Kill the Freshman: A Memoir by Zoe Trope

Trope's entries chronicle her frank accounts of her transgender search for the perfect kiss and her first girlfriend who becomes her first boyfriend.

 

Books Published for Adults that May Be of Interest to Teens

Fiction

How I Paid for College: A Novel of Sex, Theft, Friendship, and Musical Theater by Marc Acito

When drama queen Edward gets into Julliard, he has to find a way to pay for it.

The Necessary Hunger: A Novel by Nina Revoyr

Two young women grapple with the stress of competitive high school basketball, college recruiters, their sexual identities, racism, and the interracial love story of their parents.

 

Graphic Novels

Fun Home by Alison Bechdel

Alison Bechdel came out to her father as a lesbian shortly before he died, hit by a truck, possibly a suicide. In this sometimes hilarious, sometimes bleak graphic memoir, Bechdel tells the complex story of her family.

Only the Ring Finger Knows by Satoru Kannagi

At Waturu Fujii's high school, it's all the rage to wear paired rings with the girl you love. Wataru wears one though he is single, and one day discovers that his ring pairs up with handsome Yuichi Kazuki's, the senior classman idolized by the entire school.

Gotham Central, 2. Half a Life by Greg Rucka

Not everyone in Gotham City is a superhero. Members of the Gotham Central police force, like Detective Renee Montoya, just try to do their jobs. But doing her job gets more challenging when Montoya is outed.

Definition by Ariel Schrag

The author chronicles the anxieties and frustrations of her sophomore year of high school in this graphic novel.

 

Nonfiction

When I Knew edited by Robert Trachtenberg

This sometimes hilarious, sometimes poignant book has stories in four categories: When I Knew, When My Parents Knew, When Everyone Else Knew, and The Occasional (Bonus!) Coming-Out Story.

Kings and Queens: Queers at the Dance by David Boyer

Seventy years of prom stories and pictures reveal "the queer heart of an American rite of passage."

She's Not There: A Life in Two Genders by Jennifer Finney Boylan

This is a winning story of a person changing genders. Jennifer Finney Boylan explores the territory that lies between men and women, examines changing friendships, and rejoices in the redeeming power of family.

Ask Dr. Keith: Candid Answers to Queer Questions by Keith Loukes

The host of a cable TV show answers over eighty common questions relation to GLBT issues ranging from the straightforward to the unusual.

 

Blogs

http://worththetrip.wordpress.com/ - "queer books for kids and teens"

Updated 10/08

 

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