It’s officially Pride Month – the time of year when the world elevates the LGBTQ+ community and celebrates its incredible artists, writers, designers and creators.
It is important to support and recognise these talented creatives all year around, but the increased visibility of the LGBTQ+ community every June is still something that we all need to celebrate.
Books are an important tool for education, enlightenment and empowerment, with author Isabel Waidner opening up to Marie Claire UK about the importance of reading queer literature.
“Reading queer literature allows readers to learn about histories and experiences that have been marginalised and that they would otherwise not come across very easily,” Waidner told us. “Even more importantly, queer literature helps readers imagine effective modes of resistance and different ways of being towards better futures for all.”
This round-up of the best books to invest in this Pride Month promises something for everyone.
Heartstopper Series Volume 1-4 by Alice Oseman, £30 | The Works
Heartstopper is a four-part book series, following teenagers Charlie and Nick as they navigate their transition from friendship to relationship at school. It is now a hit Netflix series, and has already been renewed for two more seasons.
Alice Oseman’s Heartstopper series is a heartwarming tale of first love, while James Baldwin’s Giovanni’s Room portrays homosexuality through a racial lens, in 1950’s Paris.
Burning My Roti: Breaking Barriers as a Queer Indian Woman by Sharan Dhaliwal, £13.59 | Queer Lit
This part guide, part memoir has been called essential reading for a new generation of South Asian women. The topics cover sexual identity, mental health and beauty standards.
Burning My Roti, is a part memoir by Sharan Dhaliwal, exploring suffocating beauty standards and sexual identity. While Rainbow Milk explores the role of religion as a young man comes to terms with his sexuality while in a religious sect, on the backdrop of the Windrush Generation.
Literature can be a life-changing tool, to help us live more connected lives. So, enjoy this round-up of the best fiction and non-fiction books to read this Pride and beyond.
Happy Pride Month and happy reading!
Sister Outsider by Audre Lorde, £7.78 | Amazon
A LGBTQ+ book list has to start with Audre Lorde. The American author's words centre on her experience as a black, lesbian feminist. If you haven’t read any Lorde yet, this is where to begin. Sister Outsider includes some of the best of Lorde’s essays and speeches.
Young Mungo by Douglas Stuart, £11.99 | Blackwell’s
Born in Glasgow, in a hyper-masculine world; Protestant Mungo and Catholic James should be sworn enemies, but cannot help falling in love. A gripping story on the pull of family and the violence faced by the LGBTQ+ community.
How to Survive A Summer by Nick White, £13.59 | WH Smith
Sent to a gay conversion camp in Mississippi as a teenager, this novel follows Will as he tries to remove the traumatic experience from his mind. As a new documentary and serious case is released, his past comes back to haunt him, as Will is forced to confront his horrific camp experience.
I Know You Know Who I Am by Peter Kispert, £7.25 | Amazon
A collection of stories following characters who are forced to lie and perform before revealing their queer identity to the wider world. While deception is the core theme, it reveals that the lies we tell ourselves are the most hurtful.
Burning My Roti: Breaking Barriers as a Queer Indian Woman by Sharan Dhaliwal, £13.59 | Queer Lit
This part guide, part memoir has been called essential reading for a new generation of South Asian women. The topics cover sexual identity, mental health and beauty standards.
The Lucky List by Rachael Lippincott, £7.99 | Waterstones
Emily has always been lucky, until her mother dies. She finds a list of all the things her mother wished she did, and Emily and her friend take on the challenge. In the end, it’s not the list, but their friendship that takes an unexpected turn.
Rainbow Milk by Paul Mendes, £6.39 | Amazon
An acclaimed debut, this semi-autobiographical read is a heart-warming coming of age story. Set in the 1950’s, 19 year old Jesse is coming to terms with his sexuality in the midst of a religious cult.
We Are Made Of Diamond Stuff by Isable Waidner, £8.19 | Queer Lit
Isabel Waidner's second novel follows an unnamed narrator in a world where nothing is normal. It interrogates the queer migrant experience and the concept of national belonging.
In Their Shoes: Navigating Non-Binary Life by Jamie Windust, £12.99 | Waterstones
Jamie Windust eloquently explains that there is no one way to be non-binary. His writing features sweet anecdotes and wise conclusions, including everything from mental health to fashion.
Call Me By Your Name by Andre Aciman, £8.99 | Waterstones
Set in the Italian Riviera in the 1980's; seventeen year old Elio finds himself falling in love with an older man, as he goes through his sexual awakening.
Olivia by Dorothy Strachey, £11.74 | Amazon
It may be over 90-years-old but Olivia is still considered a classic of lesbian literature. A story of first love, Olivia follows a teenage girl infatuated with her headmistress, set in a nineteenth century Parisian boarding school.
Giovanni’s Room by James Baldwin, £9.99 | Waterstones
James Baldwin's Giovanni's Room follows the life of a gay man in Paris, exploring the intersection between homosexuality and race.
Heartstopper Series Volume 1-4 Books Collection Set By Alice Oseman, £30 | The Works
If you loved the Netflix series, then you will adore the books as teenage boys navigate love and school.
Honey Girl by Morgan Rogers, £11.68 | Book Depository
Grace, at 28 years old, is learning to love herself in this heart-warming coming of age story. A drunken trip to Las Vegas starts the journey of love.
