Does anyone have any recommendations for great LGBT fiction?
Does anyone have any recommendations for great LGBT fiction?!
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Does anyone have any recommendations for great LGBT fiction?!
The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay by Michael Chabon
This was a great book!
I have been wanting to read something by this author for so long…this should be a good first from him!
There is a lot of good stuff in YA these days. I just finished Ramona Blue, by Julie Murphy, who also wrote Dumplin’ (Dumplin is not LGBT but very good) and I really enjoyed it. Also Gena/Finn by Hannah Moskowitz and Kat Helgesen is good.
There’s a lot of YA. My students would read a lot. If anyone’s interested I could probably compile a list.
I liked carry on by rainbow rowell a lot!
I have a really hard time getting into YA
I’ll look into these though, thank you!
Check out this list: http://www.ala.org/glbtrt/award/stonewall/honored
My TBR just exploded!
Wow!! Thank you!
In one person by John Irving
Thank you, I’ve been meaning to read something by Irving!
I really liked Tipping the Velvet
one of my very favorites!
I LOVED Tipping the Velvet <3
Can’t beat Armistead Maupin’s Tales of the City series.
Absolutely! So powerful and important!!!
I added the first one to my “to read” list, I’m excited to start!
Life is Wonderful, People are Terrific by Meliza Bañales.
I looked it up and it sounds interesting, thank you!
The Paying Guests by Sarah Waters
That is definitely on my to read list! I loved Tipping the Velvet.
@Amber Another book that I enjoyed because it also incorporated a love of books is The Borrower by Rebecca Makkai.
I really enjoyed One Last Lie by Rob Kaufman.
That one sounds good, thanks!
Aquamarine, by Carol Anshaw. Pub. 1993
Thank you 🙂
I highly recommend a memoir by Alysia Abbott called Fairyland. It’s a memoir about her gay father. SO GOOD.
I looked it up and it sounds fantastic! Thanks for the suggestion!
David Levithan’s books are great – they’re YA, but still awesome!
I might try him out. I have a really hard time with YA…but I want to keep an open mind with genres.
They’re easy reads, which can be nice 🙂
I haven’t read this yet so I don’t know if it’s any good but it sounds interesting; Oranges Are Not The Only Fruit by Jeanette Winterson
Was turned into a very good TV series by Channel 4 (UK TV company) a few years ago, well worth searching out.
I’ll look into that one, thank you!
Luna, and keeping you a secret books
I would argue Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides would fit in this category, and is one of my all time favorite novels ever!
That was a great one!
I was not a fan of Middlesex. Based on my personal experience, it felt like an intersex defined person through a cis perspective.
It’s a good book, not sure it’s LGBTQ though….
I loved that book!
The Danish Girl by David Ebershoff. Just finished it and loved it. Historical fiction based on a true story.
I just looked it up, and it sounds interesting! Thank you!
Rubyfruit Jungle by Rita Mae Brown. It is the first published book acknowledging lesbian love.
It’s good, but not the first by any stretch.
I just read that one. very interesting to see how far we’ve come
@Vera You are right. I should have said the first to be widely accepted, especially considering the publicity was mostly word-of-mouth.
That one is on my list, I can’t wait to read it. Thank you!
Tales of the City series, by Armistead Maupin.
I definitely need to check these out, thank you!
Might come off a little dated but good stuff all the same.
Hero and George are both YL novels but they are well written.
Thank you! I can handle YA if it’s well written
I just finished Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe. It is YA but well written and tender. Loved it.
I might check it out, thanks!
Building Fires in the Snow. A cool anthology by Alaskan LGBTQ+ writers. University of Alaska Press.
Neat, thank you!
Reinaldo Arenas “secret history of Cuba” books. I think there are five. The first, Singing From the Well, is about his childhood in Cuba.
Thank you!
A Little Life by Yanagihira. Beautiful and devastating.
YES! One of my absolute favorites E.V.E.R! Heartbreakingly beautiful story of love between friends, families, and lovers. Wish I could read it again for the 1st time.
Wow, I definitely need to read this one
Giovanni’s Room by James Baldwin, Dancer From the Dance by Andrew Holleran, Faggots by Larry Kramer (yes, the title is non-PC, but is meant to be!), Call Me By Your Name and Enigma Variations by Andre Aciman, anything by Sarah Waters and/or Alan Hollingsworth (esp. The Line of Beauty), A Place Called Winter, by Patrick Gale…
Andrew Holleran is the author I think you mean…
Yep, sorry – corrected! Thanx!
I can’t wait to look these up, I only reconize Sarah Waters! Thank you for the suggestions!
-Jeanette Winterson is my favorite author. I especially love Written on the Body.
-Alison Bechdel, Dykes to Watch Out For
-David Sedaris, any book
-Alice Walker, The Color Purple
-Stone Butch Blues
Oh! Fun Hime by Alison Bechdel.
Thank you for the suggestions! I’ve read some Sedaris, Stone Butch Blues is on my list! I’ll look up the others. Thank you!
I’ve been trying to find Stone Butch Blues but it’s out of print?!
I enjoyed Rita Mae Brown’s Rubyfruit Jungle, Six of One, Bingo, and Venus Envy.
Rubyfruit Jungle has been on my to read list for a while… I should read it this month! Thank you for the suggestions 🙂
Haven’t read any but I did notice my library has a section dedicated to it. Actually now that I think about it I read The supernatural detective by Crin Claxton
That’s excellent!
Portrait of Dorian Gray
Thanks, I never new that one had gay characters
Price of Salt by Hightower.
That’s on my list!
The main male protagonist in Breakfast at Tiffany was gay-in the book, not the movie.
I didn’t know there was a book too! Thanks!
@Chinelo‘s wonderful book, Under the Udala Trees, the whole Kate Martinelli series by @Laurie, Fans of the Impossible Life by @Kate, The Color Purple by Alice Walker, This Is How It Always Is by @Laurie and books by @Sarah.
Loved “Under the Udala Trees”
Thank you, I will look these up!
Check out a new novel called “The truth about Goodbye” by @Russell. I am about halfway through the novel and am really enjoying it – hope you will as well!
Just requested from Netgalley! Thanx!
Thank you, I will
The Rebellion of Miss Lucy Ann Lobdell, by William Klaber. It’s based on a real person.
It sounds fascinating, thank you!
Anything by Chuck Tingle
https://www.amazon.com/Chuck-Tingle/e/B00SF2MTYK
The Gods of Tango.
Thank you!
Second Giovanni’s Room by James Baldwin.
Thanks!
YES!!! This is the genre where I can shine because I read so much of it, lol.
Mysterious Skin by Scott Heim – My favorite book ever. Touches on difficult subjects, but talks about abuse, drug use, prostitution – and how people deal with the abuse they face. Bonus: It was made into a movie starring Joseph Gordon Levitt.
House Rules by Heather Lewis – A darker book on show jumping, drugs, and relationship between the main character and a woman
The Charioteer by Mary Renault – GREAT classic book on homosexuality back in WWII.
Death in Venice by Thomas Mann – more of a classic, who could forget this one? I thought it was beautifully written, even if the content was rather.. different.
Harlan’s Race OR The Fancy Dancer both by Patricia Nell Warren – Excellent books for the time period they were written.
Any book by Edmund White – he has some great books, one of my favorite is Hotel De Dream but there’s many to name.
Any book by James Kirkwood Jr.- an amazing underrated author whose books are hard to find, but they are wonderful.
Some books by Dennis Cooper – I don’t recommend him for everyone because his subjects have a lot of depravity in it, snuff, etc. He is a great poet though and despite his subject matter, he’s a great writer. But the stuff he writes is kind of gruesome and I grew distant from his stuff later on.
A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara – A long and difficult book, has some themes of homosexuality but it’s not the main subject.
Thank you so much! I will look up each of these. You’ve given me quite a lot to choose from. I really appreciate it.
I’ve actually seen the movie you mentioned in the first one. It was so bleak and heartwrenching. I actually had a full blown panic attack watching it. I never knew it was based on a book.
No problem, I hope you like some- I can always recommend more if you want but that’s all I wrote for now lol.
Yeah it’s a really depressing movie! It’s really dark too. I liked both the movie and the book, it was one of those times where they actually did a good job of both. And me too- I watched the movie first, only to find out it was a book later.
This should keep me busy for a while!! Thank you very much 😀
Not exactly LGBT, but about a person who was born intersex, and the struggles of their life. Explains the science too. Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides
Technically, part of the full spectrum of LGBTQQIP2SA (there is one other “A” but I don’t include it).
I think this book is bad science.
It could be. I don’t know.
@Elsie why don’t you include the second a – just curious?
The 2nd “A” stands for allies and I don’t think it’s necessary to include straight people in the reference.
After LGBT, it is:
QQ = queer and questioning
I = intersex
P = pansexual
2S = two spirit
A = asexual
A = (straight) ally
I think Middlesex is a poor example of good LGBTQ writing because it’s bad science pitched as factual that comes from a straight male perspective. It is an entertaining story but it is not reflective of actual experiences of intersexed or transgender persons. Instead I recommend Intersex (For Lack of a Better Word) by Thea Hillman.
Is it bad science, or written before we knew as much as we know now?
That’s a fair point. I read it at least a decade ago so I have no recollection of the science as it was represented in this work, so I don’t doubt that it was flawed. However, what resonated with me at the time and made me consider it under the umbrella of this genre is how our society has these cultural gender and sexuality “norms” that are placed on us from extremely early on and how potentially damaging they can be to someone who doesn’t feel like they fit within them. I feel like this exploration has value within the LGBT framework. But it sounds like our original poster was already familiar with this title anyways.
@Patricia – It felt like Eugenides didn’t thoroughly research. He probably did a lot of medical research but didn’t invest enough in interfacing with real life individuals to get their POV. I felt like he made a lot of assumptions that the average cis person may make based on lack of actual awareness.
My friend’s book, Symptoms of Being Human (Jeff Garvin)
Jeff Garvin is your rl friend?! Cool!!
@Emily Yes!
Loved that too – gave it 5 stars on GR!
I have a hard time with YA, but I will look it up!
I just read Fun House by Alison Bechdel. It’s a graphic novel and it’s great.
Oops–meant Fun Home
This is a great read for any one.
Agreed.
The musical is great too but has a pretty different tone from the book.
Unfortunately haven’t seen it. Too many good Broadway shows, too little money. Thinking about Come from Away or Oslo next. Have u seen either?
I haven’t heard of either.
Thanks, I’ll check it out!
Some terrific graphic novels “Blue is the Warmest Color”; “Love is Love”; “Drama”; if you don’t mind YA “Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe”
Thanks!
city of night by john rechy
If you’re willing to read YA:
Dante and Aristotle Discover the Secrets of the Universe
I’ll Give You The Sun
Honor Girl (graphic novel)
I just finished Dante and Aristotle. So good.
Oranges are not the only fruit, middlesex, rubyfruit jungle, Chelsea Girls.
Totally forgot Rubyfruit Jungle. First lesbian novel I read, back in the 1970’s. So, so good.
Fingersmith, by Sarah Waters, or anything else by this author
I recommend Huntress by Malinda Lo.
Orphan #8, Secrets of Midwives, The Firelight Girls
OMG!! please stop!!! I have added way too many books to my already overflowing TBR list on Goodreads! LOL!!! 🙂
Every. Single. Day.
Jeannette Winterson
Pet sitters mysteries by blaze clement the brother is gay
We’re reading Rubyfruit Jungle right now in Imaginary Book Club 2017
I just requested to join!
Tales of the city by armistead maupin is essential! And crystal boys (by a Taiwanese author who’s name I can’t remember)xxxx
Thank you!
Enjoy!
ASH by Malinda Lo
A place called winter by Patrick gale. x
Riding Fury Home by Chana Wilson. It’s a memoir but the writing is good. I only point that out because a lot of memoirs I’ve read has so-so writing.
Riding Fury Home: A Memoir https://www.amazon.com/dp/1580054323/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_zYatzbNXGH7BA
This looks amazing, thank you!
Check out Augusten Burroughs, he’ll make you like memoirs!
Anything by Sarah Waters, Fun House
Gracefully Grayson
Nina LaCour writes great lesbian YA fiction.
My wife loves YA, I’ll pass this along. Thank you!
@Jacklyn
I just finished This is how it Always Is by Laurie Frankel. It is a novel about a transgender child. The author’s own child is transgender so she is writing from personal experience. I have never read a book about a transgender child before and can’t really comment on how realistic it is. It struck me as perhaps more optimistic than the experiences other transgender children may have. As a work of fiction,I thought it was a lovely story about family.
Thank you, this sounds great. I’ll look it up!
George by Alex Gino in children’s lit is an excellent story about a transgender child.
I’m currently reading You Know Me Well by Nina LaCour and David Levithan. So far am really enjoying it!