Dumbfounded!
Posted by: blogando on: April 28, 2009
Rothschild, Matthew. Dumbfounded: Big Money. Big Hair. Big Problems. or Why Having It All Isn’t for Sissies. Random House, August 2008. 9780307405425. 320p. Grades 8-12.
The author, Matthew Rothschild, was abandoned by his mother to be raised by his two Jewish grandparents in their exclusive, and very much restricted apartment building in New York City. Matthew’s financial privileges were not enough to smooth over the troubles he had fitting in at home and at the many schools he kept getting expelled from. This is a very amusing, and occasionally tragic childhood memoir that I could not put down because it is so well-written! – Arla Jones
Daddy, Papa, and Me; Mommy, Mama, and Me
Posted by: blogando on: February 8, 2009
- In: 2009
- 3 Comments
Newman, Lesléa. Daddy, Papa, and Me. Illustrated by Carol Thompson. December 2008. Tricycle Press. 20 p. (9781582462622) Pre-Kindergarten.
Newman, Lesléa. Mommy, Mama, and Me. Illustrated by Carol Thompson. December 2008. Tricycle Press. 20 p. (9781582462639) Pre-Kindergarten.
These two board books for young children were written by the author of Heather Has Two Mommies, Lesléa Newman. Both books are about same-sex parents and their child, and feature ambiguously ethnic families doing typical family acitivities. The illustrations by Carol Thompson are excellent and the prose is bouncing good fun for all kinds of loving families to enjoy over and over again. Yay for our first children’s book of the new year! -Arla Jones
2009 Rainbow Book List
Posted by: John on: February 2, 2009
- In: Annual List | News
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Introduction to 2009 Rainbow Book List
The Rainbow Project is proud to announce the 2009 Rainbow Book List, a joint undertaking of the American Library Association’s Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgendered Round Table and Social Responsibilities Round Table. Featuring well-written and/or well-illustrated titles with authentic and significant gay/lesbian/bisexual/transgendered/queer/questioning (GLBTQ) content for youth from birth through age 18, this year’s bibliography presents 34 outstanding titles, published in the last eighteen months and representing a broad range of GLBTQ experience.
The 2009 Rainbow List includes titles from 26 publishers/imprints and 36 authors and illustrators. Of the authors, five are offering their first published novels or picture books, and seven are published for the first time by major presses. Most books on the 2009 Rainbow Book List are recommended for teens, including four titles published for adults. Two picture books, two middle-grade novels, two graphic books (a novel and a biography), one short story collection, one translation, and five nonfiction titles are represented.
Coming-out stories have consistently made up a large part of GLBTQ literature, as have “problem novels” populated by characters defined by orientation. But the books on this year’s Rainbow Book List go much farther by offering young readers rich characters embodying the full spectrum of youth and family experience. Primary characters are gay, lesbian, transgendered, questioning, and straight, and they grapple with varying degrees of acceptance and prejudice from their friends, families, and communities, as well as from themselves.
Four titles stood out to the selection committee as especially deserving of recognition for their characters, stories, and quality of writing and/or illustration:
- Down to the Bone by Mayra Lazara Dole (first novel),
- 10,000 Dresses, written by Marcus Ewert and illustrated by Rex Ray (first picture book),
- Last Exit to Normal by Michael Harmon, and
- Skim by Mariko Tamaki (text) and Jillian Tamaki (artwork)
We applaud these and all of the other recommended authors and illustrators, alongside their editors and publishers, for producing works that can be held up as examples of excellence in glbtq literature for young people.
We are pleased to introduce such an extensive collection of quality titles which can be recommended and offered to young readers and their families with confidence, and we are certain that in coming years an increasing number of exceptional titles will be available to younger readers and pre-readers.
2009 Rainbow Project Members: John Andrews, Washoe County Library System (Reno, NV); Helma Hawkins, Kansas City Public Library (Kansas City, MO); K.T. Horning, Cooperative Children’s Book Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison (Madison, WI); Arla Jones, Lawrence High School (Lawrence, KS); Natalie Kendall, Greeley Elementary School (Chicago, IL); Sharon Senser McKellar, Oakland Public Library (Oakland, CA); Michael Santangelo, Brooklyn Public Library (Brooklyn, NY); Victor Schill, Harris County Public Library (Houston, TX); Nel Ward, Chair (Newport, OR); and Christie Gibrich, Assistant to the Rainbow List for Public Relations and Support, Grand Prairie Public Library System (Grand Prairie, TX).
Rainbow Book List
An entry beginning with an asterisk (*) indicates the book was found to be exceptional and highly recommended.
Picture Books
Brannen, Sarah. Uncle Bobby’s Wedding. 2008. 32p. Putnam, $15.99. (978-0-399-24712-5). PreS-Gr. 2. Chloe’s concerns about her uncle’s upcoming wedding have nothing to do with the fact that his partner is male; instead, like a typical preschooler, she worries that she will lose her favorite uncle’s attention.
* Ewert, Marcus. 10,000 Dresses. Illustrated by Rex Ray. 2008. 32p. Seven Stories Press, $14.95. (978-1583228500). PreS-Gr. 2. Bailey dreams of wearing beautiful dresses, but her family disapproves of her understanding of her true self.
Middle / Early Young Adult
Fiction
Bauer, A.C.E. No Castles Here. October 2007. 270p. Random House, $15.99 (Trade); $18.99 (Lib. Binding) (978-0-375-83921-4; 978-0-375-93921-1). Gr. 5-7. A book of fairy tales, participation in a school chorus, and a gay Big Brother combine to give 11-year-old Augie the confidence he needs to become an activist.
Woodson, Jacqueline. After Tupac & D Foster. 2008. 153p. Putnam, $15.99. (978-0-399- 24654-8). Gr. 5-8. Eleven-year-old D Foster completes a trio of friends who share a passion for the music of Tupac Shakur as they deal with discrimination directed toward the gay brother of one of the trio.
Young Adult
Fiction
Bach, Tamara. Girl from Mars. Translated by Shelley Tanaka. 2008. 180p. Groundwood Books, $12.95. (978-0-88899-725-8). Gr. 7-10. At fifteen, Miriam’s life in a small German town lacks excitement and meaning until she meets Laura and begins to discover how full her life already is.
Brothers, Meagan. Debbie Harry Sings in French. 2008. 240p. Henry Holt, $16.95. (9780805080803/1-8050-8080-5). Gr. 8-12. Johnny is pretty sure he isn’t gay, but he’s not quite sure what it means that he wants to be Debbie Harry, to dress like her, have hair like hers, and to hang out with drag queens.
Cohn, Rachel, and David Levithan. Naomi and Ely’s No Kiss List. August 2007. 230p. Knopf, $16.99 (Trade); $19.99 (Lib. Binding); $8.99 (pbk.). (978-0-375-84440-9; 9780375944406; 9780375844416). Gr. 9-12. Witty, urbane Naomi, age 19, finally comes to terms with being hopelessly in love with her gay best friend, Ely, even after she learns he is sleeping with her boyfriend.
* Dole, Mayra Lazara. Down to the Bone. 2008. 367p. HarperTeen. $16.99 (Trade); $17.89 (Lib. Binding). (978-0-06-084310-6; 978-0-06-084311-3). Gr. 8-12. After sixteen-year-old Laura is outed at school, kicked out of her home, and rejected by her girlfriend, she finds herself and her community in this hilarious debut novel with an all-Latino cast.
Dunnion, Kristyn. Big Big Sky. 2008. 244p. Red Deer Press, $14.95. (978-0-88995-404-5). Gr. 10-12. When a pod of five young well-trained female warrior assassins starts falling apart, each must show her strength in the outside real world to avoid being captured and unplugged.
Ford, Michael Thomas. Suicide Notes. 2008. 295p. HarperTeen, $16.99 (Trade); $17.89 (Lib. Binding). (978-0-06-073755-9; 978-0-06-073756-6). (978-0-06-073755-9). Gr. 9-11. After he wakes up in a psychiatric hospital, 15-year-old Jeff describes the events that led up to his attempted suicide and how his life is changed during his 45-day stay.
Geerling, Marjetta. Fancy White Trash. 2008. 257p. Viking, $16.99. (978-0-670-01082-0). Gr. 9-11. Fifteen-year-old Abby struggles with her highly dysfunctional family while her best friend Cody deals with the challenges of coming out to himself and his friends.
Goldman, Steven. Two Parties, One Tux, and a Very Short Film about the Grapes of Wrath. 2008. 272p. Bloomsbury, $16.99. (978-1-59990-271-5). Gr. 8-10. Eleventh-grader Mitchell’s life suddenly changes when his best friend David comes out of the closet.
Grant, Stephanie. Map of Ireland. 2008. 197p. Scribner, $22.00. (978-1-4165-5622-0/ 1-4165-5622-2). Gr. 10-12. Ann’s junior year is complicated by the forced busing of Black children to her formerly all-white high school, forcing Ann to deal with her racist environment while coping with being a lesbian in an inter-racial relationship.
Hardy, Mark. Nothing Pink. 2008. 109p. Front Street/Boyds Mills Press, $16.95. (978-1-932425-24-6). Gr. 8-10. Tormented with thoughts about his own homosexuality, Vincent, son of a Pentacostal preacher, fights his impulses until he meets Robert, a church friend, who is much more accepting.
* Harmon, Michael. Last Exit to Normal. 2008. 275p. Knopf, $15.99. (978-037584-982). Gr. 9-11. Ben and his two dads move to rural Montana where Ben absolutely does not fit in and finds it harder to deal with having two dads than he did in their previous urban home.
Hegamin, Tonya Cherie. M+O 4EVR. 2008. 165p. Houghton Mifflin, $16.00. (978-0-618-49570-2). Gr. 7-10. After the death of Marianne, Opal’s best friend, and more, Opal deals with her loss through the life of Hannah, a runaway slave who died in 1842.
Juby, Susan. Another Kind of Cowboy. December 2007. 344p. HarperTeen, $16.99 (Trade); $17.89 (Lib. Binding). (978-0-06-076517-0; 9780060765187). Gr. 8-10. Sixteen, gay, and closeted, Alex has dreamed of riding dressage since childhood, although his father wants him to be a “real” cowboy.
Kluger, Steve. My Most Excellent Year: A Novel of Love, Mary Poppins, & Fenway Park. 2008. 403p. Dial, $16.99. (978-0803732278). Gr. 8-10. Three high school friends, including a fun, proud, and just about out-of-the-closet gay young man, tell about their ‘excellent’ ninth-grade year.
Konigsberg, Bill. Out of the Pocket. 2008. 264p. Dutton, $16.99. (9780525479963). Gr. 9-11. Bobby’s skills as a top high-school quarterback also serve him well off the field when he is outed in the school newspaper and deals with the consequences in an honest and realistic way.
Levithan, David. How They Met, and Other Stories. 2008. 256p. Knopf, $16.99 (Trade); $19.99 (Lib. Binding). (978-0375848865; 9780375948862). Gr. 9-11. Find the answer to “what is love?” in this diverse collection of short stories.
Lieberman, Leanne. Gravity. 2008. 245p. Orca, $12.95. (978-1-55469-049-7). Gr. 9-11. Brought up as a strict Orthodox Jew to believe that homosexuality is an abomination, 15-year-old Ellie struggles with her sexual feelings for another girl.
McMahon, Jennifer. My Tiki Girl. 2008. 246p. Dutton, $16.99. (978-0-525-47943-7). Gr. 9-11. After once-popular Maggie, 15, is left with an injured leg after a car accident that kills her mother, she finds solace with Dahlia, the new girl at school, and her unconventional family, including a mentally-ill mother.
Penny, Patricia G. Belinda’s Obsession. [Not Just Proms & Parties series]. September 2007. 134p. Lobster Press, $7.95. (978-1-897073-62-9). Gr. 7-10. After she discovers that her mother is having an affair, Belinda’s obsession with saving her parents’ marriage damages her growing relationship with her last summer’s fling, Candace.
Rosen, Selina. Sword Masters. 2008. 313p. Dragon Moon Press, $19.95. (978-1-896944-65-4). Gr. 9-12. Determined to avenge her father’s death, Tarius pretends to be male and non-Katabull to study with the Sword Masters but finds more than she bargained for when she falls in love with the headmaster’s daughter, Jena, who thinks that Tarius is a man.
Rud, Jeff. Crossover. 2008. 170p. Orca, $9.95. (978-1-55143-981-5). Gr. 7-10. Sixteen-year-old Kyle gets caught in the middle between his basketball team and drama club when he opts to join both and re-establishes an old friendship with Luke, who is the frequent target of gay-baiting.
Ruditis, Paul. Entrances and Exits. [Drama series]. 2008. 242p. Simon Pulse, $8.99. (978-1-4169-5906-9). Gr. 7-10. A first time director and high school junior, Bryan has to learn to cope with a temperamental playwright, the leading actress’s jealous boyfriend, competition from a new girl on the drama scene, and his yearnings for Drew, his ex-best friend who kissed him and then ran.
* Tamaki, Mariko and Jillian Tamaki. Skim. 2008. 140p. Groundwood Books, $15.00. (0888997531/9780888997531). Gr. 9-12. Would-be Wiccan and goth Skim, aka Kimberly Keiko Cameron, is revealed in this graphic novel as a sometimes target for the popular students at her all-girls private school in Toronto, where she falls in love with her English teacher Ms. Archer.
Wilson, Martin. What They Always Tell Us. 2008. 293p. Delacorte, $15.99. (9780385735070). Gr. 9-11. Isolated and unsure of his place in his family and at school after an attempted suicide Alex is encouraged to try out for cross-country by his brother’s friend, Nathen, and discovers more than just a supportive teammate.
Wittlinger, Ellen. Love & Lies: Marisol’s Story. 2008. 256p. Simon & Schuster, $16.00. (1416916237) (978-1416916239). Gr. 9-11. When Marisol takes a year off between high school and college to write a novel, she falls in love with her creative writing teacher, Olivia.
Nonfiction
Alsenas, Linas. Gay America: Struggle for Equality. 2008. 160p. Amulet/Abrams, $24.95. (978-0-8109-9487-4). Gr. 7-12. The fascinating story of gay people throughout America’s history is told with clear text and lots of photography.
Leleux, Robert. The Memoirs of a Beautiful Boy. 2008. 272p. St. Martin’s Press, $23.95. (978-0-312-36168-6). Gr. 10-12. Hilarious stories of a comically dysfunctional family describe growing up gay in Texas.
Passet, Joanne. Sex Variant Woman: The Life of Jeannette Howard Foster. 2008. 448 p. Da Capo Press, $27.50. (0786718226/ 9780786718221). Gr. 10-12. Foster’s roller-coaster life and studies defined lesbian history in the twentieth century.
Schofield, Scott Turner. Two Truths and a Lie: A Memoir. 2008. 127p. Homofactus Press, $15.00. (978-0-9785973-2-0). Gr. 11-12. The fluidity of gender shines in these three performance scripts by a transgender man from the Deep South who describes growing up in a world of debutante balls and homecoming proms.
Schrag, Ariel. Awkward and Definition. 2008. Touchstone (Simon & Schuster), $15.00. (978-1-4165-5231-4). Gr. 10-12. Pen and ink comic drawings about Schrag’s early high school years illuminate her funny and touching journey toward a sexual identify amidst concerns about school, sex, drugs, and rock and roll.
2008 Rainbow Book List
Posted by: John on: February 1, 2009
- In: News
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On the fortieth anniversary of the Kinsey report telling the world that GLBTQ people are not alone in their feelings or experience, 25 years since the publication of the controversial Annie on My Mind, and almost 20 years after Daddy’s Roommate and Heather Has Two Mommies, the Rainbow Project proudly presents its inaugural bibliography, a bibliography of current books for young readers from birth through age 18 dealing with the myriad of gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender or questioning.issues.
Introduction to 2008 Rainbow Book List
For our first list, we included books with original copyrights in the U.S. for the years 2005-2007. The search for these books was eye-opening, revealing a lack of accessibility through missing subject headings and the promotion of inappropriate titles insulting to the GLBTQ population including such books as A Parent’s Guide to Preventing Homosexuality. The frustrations that we had in finding potential Rainbow books clearly demonstrate the vital need for this list of quality books, originally published during the current calendar year or the six months prior to that year, that validate same-gender lifestyles.
After examining more than 200 books to find the 45 on the list, we concluded that more titles are available than there were five years ago, and these books generally showed an improvement in the quality of writing. The existing material, however, is heavily weighted to the young adult audience with few books for younger readers not in high school. Also many current books paste in the glbtq characters in a secondary role in a weak attempt for diversity.
A major issue that GLBTQ books face is censorship. And Tango Makes Three, one of the books on this bibliography, topped the 2006 list of challenged books, according to ALA. We thank the authors, illustrators, editors, and publishers who are willing to confront these challenges and continue providing more quality books that portray glbtq characters in a realistic and prominent manner.
We would like to star four Rainbow Project List books, published in 2007: Peter Cameron, Someday This Pain Will Be Useful to You; Julie Anne Peters, grl2grl; St. James, James, Freak Show; and Lu Vickers, Breathing Underwater. We look forward to more books of this quality for the 2009 list.
Committee Members: Jane Cothron, Lincoln County Library District/Coastal Resources Sharing Network (OR); Helma Hawkins, Kansas City Public Library (MO); Arla Jones, Lawrence High School (KS); Natalie Kendall, Greeley Elementary School (IL); Sharon Senser McKellar, Oakland Public Library (CA); Victor Schill, Harris County Public Library (TX); Nel Ward (OR); and Christie Gibrich, Grand Prairie Public Library (TX). The Rainbow Project is sponsored by the Social Responsibilities Round Table and the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgendered Round Table of the American Library Association.
Rainbow Book List
An entry beginning with an asterisk (*) indicates the book was found to be exceptional and highly recommended.
Beginning Readers
Considine, Kaitlyn. Emma and Meesha My Boy: A Two Mom Story. Ilustrated by Binny Hobbs. 2005. unp. Two Moms Books, $10.95. (9781413416008). Pre-K. When Emma’s two moms teach her to be nice to her cat, Emma enjoys being told yes instead of no.
Gonzalez, Rigoberto. Antonio’s Card/La Tarjeta de Antonio. Illustrated by Cecilia Concepcion Alvarez. 2005. 32p. Children’s Book Press, $16.95. (9780892392049). Gr. 1-3. Antonio comes to terms with his classmates’ ridicule of his mother’s partner, Leslie.
Jopling, Heather. Monicka’s Papa Is Tall. Illustrated by Allyson Demoe. 2006. unp. Nickname (9780978073916). Pre-K. Monicka’s papa and daddy are very different, but the puzzle pieces show that both of them love her very much.
Jopling, Heather. Ryan’s Mom Is Tall. Illustrated by Allyson Demoe. 2006. unp. Nickname Press, (9780978073909). Pre-K. Ryan’s mom and mummy are very different, but the puzzle pieces show that both of them love him very much.
Lindenbaum, Pija. Mini Mia and Her Darling Uncle. Translated by Elisabeth Kallick Dyssegaard. 2007. unp. R&S Books, $16.00. (9789129667349/9129667348). K-Gr. 2. Jealous of her uncle’s new partner, Fergus, feisty Mia plays tricks to drive him away until the day Uncle Tommy isn’t feeling well and she decides to accept his relationship with Fergus.
Richardson, Justin and Peter Parnell. And Tango Makes Three. Illustrated by Henry Cole. 2005. unp. Simon & Schuster, $15.99. (9780689878459/0689878451). K-Gr. 2. At New York City’s Central Park Zoo, two male penguins parent an egg and start a family.
Middle / Early Young Adult
Fiction
Burch, Christian. The Manny Files. 2006. 296p. Atheneum, $15.95. (9781416900399/141690039X). 296p. Gr. 5-8. Shy Keats Dalinger learns from his unconventional male “nanny” to be more self-confident and out-going while the “manny” becomes more and more a part of the family.
Hartinger, Brent. The Order of the Poison Oak. 2005. 211p. HarperTeen, $15.99. (0060567309). Gr. 7-10. 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.
Howe, James. Totally Joe. 2005. 189p. Atheneum/Ginee Seo Books, $15.95. (9780689839573/068983597X). Gr. 6-8. 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.
Larochelle, David. Absolutely, Positively Not. 2005. 219p. Arthur A. Levine Books, $16.95. (0439591090). Gr. 7-10. 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.
Limb, Sue. Girl Nearly 16, Absolute Torture. 2005. 216p. Delacorte, $15.95. (0385732163). Gr. 7-10. Forced to leave her boyfriend and visit with her father for two weeks, 15-year-old Jess finally learns the reason her father left her mother.
Peters, Julie Anne. Between Mom and Jo. 2006. 232p. Little, Brown/Megan Tingley Books, $16.99. (0316739065). 232p. Gr. 7-10. 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.
Selvadurai, Shyam. Swimming in the Monsoon Sea. 2005. 280p. Tundra, $18.95. (9780887767357). Gr. 7-10. Fourteen-year-old Amrith finds his life in Sri Lanka turned upside down when his Canadian cousin visits and Amrith falls in love with him.
Non-Fiction
Marcus, Eric. What If Someone I Know Is Gay: Answers to Questions about What It Means to be Gay and Lesbian. 2007. 183p. Simon Pulse, $8.99. (9781416949701/1416949704). Gr. 7-12. This radically updated resource covers basics and not-so-basics in a question-and-answer format.
Miller, Calvin Craig. No Easy Answers: Bayard Rustin and the Civil Rights Movement. [Portraits of Black Americans Series]. 2005. 160p. Morgan Reynolds, $27.95. (9781931798433/1931798435). Gr. 7-10. Although a leader in the US civil rights movement, Rustin’s arrest, prosecution, and imprisonment for a homosexual encounter were used to discredit his work.
When I Knew. Edited by Robert Trachtenberg. Illustrated by Tom Bachtell. 2005. 120p. Regan Books, $22.95. (0060571462). Gr. 9-12. More than 80 contributors briefly describe their self-discovery “eureka moment” regarding their sexual orientation in a fun book with a magazine style.
Young Adult
Fiction
Alvarado, T. I. Wanted. 2006. 190p. Alyson, $14.95. (9781555839451/1555839452). Gr. 10-12. Bounty hunter Ladybird “Bird” Blacker has too much to deal with, from a pacifist partner to a six-foot-, seven-inch-tall business rival who wears a scowl you couldn’t scrape off with a chisel, and then her little sister comes to town.
Berman, Steve. Vintage: A Ghost Story. 2007. 148p. Haworth , $12.95. (9781560236313/1560236310). Gr. 10-12. Rejected by his parents because he’s gay and sent to live with his aunt, a teen is haunted by a handsome boy, in more ways than one, and only black magic will help.
* Cameron, Peter. Someday This Pain Will Be Useful to You. 2007. 229p. Farrar/Frances Foster Books, $16.00. (9780374309893/03743098920. Gr. 10-12. 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.
Davis, Will. My Side of the Story. 2007. 243p. Bloomsbury, $14.95. (9781596912946/1596912944). Gr. 10-12. Only 16, cheeky Jarold a.k.a. Jazz, hits the gay bars to escape the misery of his life.
Garden, Nancy. Hear Us Out!: Lesbian and Gay Stories of Struggle, Progress, and Hope, 1950 to the Present. 2007. 230p. Farrar, $18.00. (9780374317591/0374317593). Gr. 8-11. Fact and fiction show the struggles for lgbt teens in America during the past five decades.
Goobie, Beth. Hello, Groin. 2006. 271p. Orca, $17.95. (9781551434599/1551434598). Gr. 9-12. 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.
Humphreys, Helen. Wild Dogs. 2005. 185p. Norton, $13.95. (0393060152). Gr. 10-12. 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.
Hyde, Catherine Ryde. Becoming Chloe. 2006. 215p. Knopf, $15.95. (0375832580). Gr. 9-12. 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.
Levithan, David. Wide Awake. 2006. 221p. Knopf, $16.95. (9780375834660/0375834664). Gr. 9-12: 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.
Moore, Perry. Hero. 2007. 428p. Hyperion, $16.99. (9781423101956/1423101952). Gr. 10-12. 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.
Noyes, Katia. Crashing America. 2005. 249p. Alyson, $14.95. (1555839118). Gr. 10-12. Afraid that she will kill herself at age 18 as her mother did, 17-year-old Girl (formerly Gretchen) flees San Francisco on a road trip to the Midwest, searching for a place where she belongs.
Peters, Julie Anne. Far from Xanadu. 2005. 282p. Little, Brown, $16.99. (031615881X). Gr. 9-12. Mike Szabo–ace softball player, weightlifter, a.k.a. Mary Elizabeth–has enough trouble surviving in her small town before a new girl, Xanadu, turns Mike’s life upside down.
* Peters, Julie Anne. grl2grl. 2007. 151p. Little, Brown/Megan Tingley Books, $11.99. (9780316013437/0316013439). Gr. 9-12. The young women in this collection of ten short stories are at different levels of self-discovery, searching for satisfying relationships.
Rucka, Greg. Gotham Central: Half a Life. 2005. 168p. Il. Michael Lark et al. DC Comics, $14.99. (1401204384). 168p. Gr. 9-12. Police detective Renee Montoya’s secret lesbian life, which she must keep from not only her co-workers but also her family, puts her in great danger when she is implicated in a murder and her main defender is the psychopathic criminal Two-Face.
Sanchez, Alex. Getting It. 2006. 210p. Simon & Schuster, $16.95. (9781416908968/141690896X). Gr. 9-12. 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.
* St. James, James. Freak Show. 2007. 298p. Dutton, $18.99. (978052547799-0). Gr. 9-12. 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.
Steinhofel, Andreas. The Center of the World. Translated by Alisa Jaffa. 2005. 467p. Delacorte, $16.95. (038572943X). Gr. 11-12. Seventeen-year-old Phil navigates his complicated family dynamics and his first sexual relationship in a lyrical novel first published in Germany.
* Vickers, Lu. Breathing Underwater. 2007. 251p. Alyson, $24.95. (9781555839642/1555839649. Gr. 10-12. In 1970s Florida, it’s literally sink or swim for12-year-old Lily who struggles for self-acceptance while dealing with her mother’s mental illness.
Wittlinger, Ellen. Parrotfish. 2007. 294p. Simon & Schuster, $16.99. (9781416916222/9781416916228). Gr. 9-12. 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.
Nonfiction
Baez, John and others. The Gay and Lesbian Guide to College Life. 2007. 391p. Random/Princeton Review, $13.95 (9780375766237/037576237). Gr. 10-12. College life for GLBTQ students: financing, the right school, being out or not, dealing with GLBTQphobia, and more, is the focus of this guide for both students and those who love and care about them.
Beam, Chris. Transparent: Love, Family, and Living the T with Transgender Teenagers. 2007. 323p. Harcourt, $25.00. (9780151011964/0151011966). Gr. 10-12. Four transgendered girls share their world with a volunteer in a Los Angeles school for gay and transgender students.
Bechdel, Alison. Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic. 2006. 240p. Houghton Mifflin, $13.95. (9780618477944/0618477942). Gr. 11-12. Bechdel reveals her childhood experiences with a closeted gay father and her coming out as a lesbian in this powerful graphic-style memoir.
Carlip, Hillary. Queen of the Oddballs and Other True Stories From a Life Unaccording to Plan. 2006. 273p. Harper, $13.95. (9780060878832/0060878835). Gr. 10-12. This hilarious offbeat memoir chronicles the escapades of an unconventional girl surrounded by artists and rockstars in the 1960s and 1970s.
Cart, Michael and Christine A. Jenkins. The Heart Has Its Reasons: Young Adult Literature with Gay/Lesbian/Queer Content, 1969-2004. 2006. 205p. Scarecrow Press, $42.00. (978810850712/0810850710). Gr. 9-12. This overview of young adult glbtq fiction 1970 to 2004 includes lists of books for teens.
The Full Spectrum: A New Generation of Writing. Edited by David Levithan and Billy Merrill. 2006. 272p. Knopf, $9.95. (9780375832901/0375832904). 288pp. Gr. 8-11. 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.
Hear Me Out: True Stories of Teens Educating and Confronting Homophobia. Planned Parenthood of Toronto. 2005. 197p. Second Story Press, $12.95. (1896764878). Gr. 9-12. Twenty teens from a variety of social, economic, ethnic, and racial backgrounds give personal accounts of gay, lesbian, queer, transgender, transsexual, and questioning young-adult experiences.
Keen, Lisa. Out Law: What LGBT Youth Should Know about Their Legal Rights. [Queer Action/Queer Ideas Series] 2007. 158p. Beacon, $11.00. (0807079669). Gr. 9-12. LGBT young adults can make a difference.
Patterson, Romaine, with Patrick Hinds. The Whole World Was Watching: Living in the Light of Matthew Shepard. 2005. 289p. Advocate, $24.95. (1555839010). Gr. 9-12. After young gay Matthew Shepard was brutally murdered in Laramie (WY), the author of this book formed a group of “angels” who surrounded the bigoted Fred Phelps of Topeka (KS) when he and a small group picketed outside the killer’s trial with such signs as “Matthew in Hell”: this is the autobiography of the young woman who conceived and carried out this idea.
Rouse, Wade. America’s Boy: A Memoir. 2006. 340p. Dutton, $24.95. (9780525949343/0525949348). Gr. 10-12. 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.
An entry beginning with an asterisk (*) indicates the book was found to be exceptional and highly recommended.
A Note about Our Nomination Process
Posted by: kthorning on: January 30, 2009
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You’ll find among the 2009 nominations books from 2008 and 2009. That’s because we consider books published in the current calendar year, as well as the last six months of the preceding calendar year that committee members had not yet had time to locate and read when we meet in January at the ALA Midwinter Meeting.
Any committee member can nominate books throughout the year. We also welcome nominations from you, so on this blog we will periodically solicit field nominations. A committee member must then second your nomination in order for the book to go on to the formal consideration phase.
We’d love to hear what you think about any of the books we’ve nominated, so please feel free to comment.
David Inside Out
Posted by: kthorning on: January 30, 2009
- In: 2009
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Bantle, Lee. David Inside Out. 2009. 192p. Henry Holt, $16.99. (978-0805081220) Gr. 8-12
David comes out in his senior year after he falls in love another member of his track team.
This is one of the best and most realistic coming out stories I’ve ever read for teens. David first has to deal with his own internalized homophobia before coming out to his best friend (who is also gay) and acting on his love for Sean. You have to get past the hokey jacket art (never mind that the story takes place in Minnesota in the winter) and a bit of a slow start, but if you stick with it, you’ll get completely caught up. The author doesn’t shy away from the physicality of David’s passion, which is nice, and he also does a good job of showing the depth of David’s emotions, as well as his vulnerability. David is a refreshingly real character, and the secondary characters are well developed, too. — KT Horning
Society’s Child
Posted by: kthorning on: January 30, 2009
Ian, Janis. Society’s Child: My Autobiography. 2008 (July). Tarcher/Penguin, $26.95. 360p. (978-1-58542-675-1). Gr. 10-12.
The downward spiral of Ian’s personal and professional life after her famous release of “Society’s Child” when she was 14 came from her fame and inability to trust and lasted until her return in 1993 at the age of 52.
This biography, published for adults, shows the struggle inflicted by the grueling music. The narrative delineates her coming out, her relationships with both men and women including her husband’s attempt to kill her, and the supportiveness of her partner, Pat, who helped her out a debilitating illness and back into show biz. —Nel Ward
We, Two Boys
Posted by: kthorning on: January 30, 2009
- In: 2009
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Sax, Aline. We, Two Boys. 2008. Clavis, $24.95. (978-1605370248). Gr. 9-12
When teenager Albert emigrates from Belgium to New York City in the early 19th century, he finds himself alone when all his family members are returned to their native country but wants to stay after developing a relationship with Jack, an American boy.
Published for adults, this book is powerfully strikingly honest in its portrayal of adolescent homosexuality, unusual in an historical novel. —Nel Ward
Girl, Hero
Posted by: kthorning on: January 30, 2009
- In: 2009
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Jones, Carrie. Girl, Hero. 2008. 305p. Flux, $16.95. (978-0-7387-1051-8). Gr. 7-12
Finding your way in high school can be scary, but with a secret friend like dead silver screen hero John Wayne at her side, high school freshman Lily is able to choose between trying out for cheerleader or the school musical.
Lily’s decision is made when she lands a big part in the play, but now her best friend is jealous. Lily writes to John Wayne each day in an effort to make sense of the struggles her family is having–her divorced mother has started a relationship with a sleazy family friend, her brother-in-law is battering her sister, and a boy she thinks is cute tells her that everyone in town thinks her father is gay.–Arla Jones