Gay-Lesbian-Bisexual-Transgender Literature for Teens
Fiction
Boyd, Maria
High school jock and all-around popular guy Will Armstrong moons a bus full of girls and is assigned community service which includes joining the school band and helping out with the musical. While serving his time, he is befriended by a gay boy and is forced to reconsider his own stereotypical views of what it means to be a man. Gr 9-12.
Cameron, Peter
Someday This Pain Will Be Useful to You
Holden Caulfield,meet James Sveck, a white, middle-class New Yorker who disdains his peers and most of the adults in his life, except for the gay man who manages his mother's art gallery,
Gr. 10-12.
Cohn, Rachel.
With a playlist for every moment, and the need for her tech buzzing in her veins, can Very unplug enough to discover what her heart really wants before it’s too late and take a chance at real love. Gr 9+.
Eagland, Jane.
Louisa Cosgrove, a high-spirited young lady in nineteenth century England, loves her cousin Grace and longs to be a doctor. A plot devised by someone close to her puts her in an insane asylum, doubting her own identity. Gr 9+.
Goobie, Beth
Wanting to be normal, 16-year-old Dylan Kowolski tries to hide her lesbianism and develop sexual feelings for her boyfriend at the same time she has a passionate crush on her best female friend. Gr. 9-12.
Green, John and David Levithan
On a cold Chicago night, two sixteen-year-olds—one gay and one not—meet and discover they have one big thing in common, their name. From then on, their lives, their friends and their loves intertwine and culminate in the staging of one of the funniest high school musicals ever.
Gr 9+.
Hartinger, Brent
Tired of being the school freak, gay 16-year-old Russel tries to escape as a summer camp counselor in a rural summer camp only to be attracted to the same counselor as his bisexual friend Min. Gr. 7-10.
Horner, Emily
A Love Story Starring My Dead Best Friend
Following the death of her best friend Julia, Cass finds herself involved in a project to produce the musical Julia wrote. Betrayed loyalties and school bullies set Cass off on a journey where she finds self-awareness and acceptance. Gr 9+.
Howe, James
In 13-year-old Joe's alphabiography assignment—the story of his life from A to Z—he bares his soul about his parents, teachers, friends, and enemies--and his coming out. Gr. 6-8.
Humphreys, Helen
Alice, in love with a wildlife biologist, gathers at the forest's edge with her and four other people to save their dogs that have become feral. Gr. 10-12.
Hyde, Catherine Ryan
Teenage Ellie falls in love with her next-door neighbor Frank, and then, to her dismay, discovers that he is transgender. Gr 9+.
Hyde, Catherine Ryde
Attempting to protect Wanda (aka Chloe), another homeless teenager, 17-year-old Jordan finds the brutality and beauty in life on their road trip across the country. Gr. 9-12.
Larochelle, David
Fifteen-year-old Steven conscientiously collects photos of girls in bikinis and dates his female classmates in this humorous attempt to fit into his Minnesota high school, only to find out some surprising things about the people around him—and himself. Gr. 7-10.
Levithan, David
2006. In a future American when gay Jewish Abraham Stein is elected president, lovers Jimmy and Duncan join the throngs of people traveling to Topeka to protest the governor's threat to change votes. Gr. 9-12
Moore, Perry
Thom Creed, the son of superheroes, has to hide the fact that he's gay if he's going to fit into the League—but he finds a lot more problems than that facing him. Gr. 10-12.
Peters, Julie Anne.
. The young women in this collection of ten short stories are at different levels of self-discovery, searching for satisfying relationships. Gr. 9-12.
Peters, Julie Anne
Fourteen-year-old Nick has a great life with his two moms until they split up and he's caught in the middle with no support. Gr. 7-10.
Rainfield, Cheryl.
Fifteen-year-old Kendra is a budding artist who has far too many secrets. Not only does she cut herself, she is grappling with her childhood sexual abuse and her burgeoning sexuality. Gr 9+.
Sanchez, Alex.
Hoping to impress a sexy female classmate, 15-year-old Carlos secretly hires gay student Sal to give him an image makeover in exchange for Carlos's helping to form a Gay-Straight Alliance at their Texas high school. Gr. 9-12.
St. James, James.
Outrageously over-the-top teen drag queen Billy Bloom, a new student at the very conservative Dwight D. Eisenhower Academy, finds that life is not easy for him among the rich white students with their brutal homophobia. Gr. 9-12.
Wittlinger, Ellen.
When Angela, who has never felt comfortable as a girl, finally comes out as transgendered and begins life as a boy, she isn't prepared for everyone's reactions. Gr. 9-12.
Nonfiction
Bechdel, Alison
. Bechdel reveals her childhood experiences with a closeted gay father and her coming out as a lesbian in this powerful graphic-style memoir. Gr. 11-12.
Cart, Michael and Christine A. Jenkins
The Heart Has Its Reasons: Young Adult Literature with Gay/Lesbian/Queer Content, 1969-2004
. This overview of young adult glbtq fiction 1970 to 2004 includes lists of books for teens. Gr. 9-12.
Cruse, Howard.
While fighting for civil rights in the 1960s South, Toland fights the realization that he is gay, and has to deal with the idea and the change in his own thoughts and personal identity. Gr 10+.
This collection of essays and poetry from a wide diversity of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgendered teens shows the complexity of today's LGBTQ youths. Gr. 8-11.
Keen, Lisa
Out Law: What LGBT Youth Should Know about Their Legal Rights
LGBT young adults can make a difference! Gr. 9-12.
Rouse, Wade
Growing up in southwestern Missouri in the 1970s and hopelessly out of step with the redneck masculinity surrounding him, Wade tries to hide the fact that he is gay by overeating. Gr. 10-12.
Adapted from the American Library Association’s Rainbow List of GLBTQ books for children and teens. September 2011
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