The 2025 Rainbow Book List is excited to present its selection of books celebrating LGBTQIA+ youth and families, spanning from birth to age 18. The compilation includes over 175 titles released between July 1, 2023, and December 31, 2024.

With the attacks against and removal of so many queer stories from public and school libraries, the existence of this list is vital to continue to assist librarians, educators, caregivers, LGBTQIA+ members, and community allies in selecting quality LGBTQIA+ stories to include in their collections. Over the last few years, our job as librarians to fight for the inclusion of stories that reflect and celebrate the existence of all genders and sexual identities has become increasingly difficult. Unfortunately, the fact that this
list exists will anger those individuals who wish to erase and censor queer identities and challenge titles in library collections. And through it all, we remain encouraged that so many queer stories are continuing to
be told. The experiences of LGBTQIA+ youth and families deserve to be represented and included in ALL library collections. It is our hope that the work of this committee will help stakeholders be intentional about including these stories in their collections and libraries. And to those who support and use this list, we thank you.

This past year, the Rainbow Book List committee assessed more than 550 books, enabling us to continue to offer two distinct top 10 lists. The Top Ten Titles for Young Readers are tailored for readers from birth to middle school, while the Top Ten Titles for Teen Readers cater to a young adult audience. Throughout the annotated list, the presence of an asterisk (*) signifies that a title has earned a spot on one of the top ten lists.

The Rainbow Book List is brought to you by the Rainbow Round Table of the American Library Association. Members of the 2025 Rainbow Book List are: Jennifer Powell (Chair), Tori Gellman(Chair), Sarah Anderson, Amanda Antonacci, Ashley B, Nathan Bartos, Kelly H, Meagan Hopkins Looney, Noah Mullens, Carrie Richmond, Sylvie S, Melaina Squicciarini, and Michelle Vacchio.

View the Full 2025 Rainbow Book List (PDF).