GLBTQ: Fiction for Teens

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Absolutely, Positively Not by David LaRochelle (2005) YAFICT LAROCHEL DAVID Absolute

Chronicles a teenage boy's humorous attempts to fit in at his Minnesota high school by becoming a macho, girl-loving, "Playboy" pinup-displaying heterosexual.

Annie on My Mind by Nancy Garden (1982/2007) YPBK G

Liza tries to put aside her feelings for Annie after the disaster at Foster Academy, but eventually she allows love to triumph over the ignorance of others.

Ash by Malinda Lo (2009) YAFICT LO MALINDA Ash

In this variation on the Cinderella story, Ash grows up believing in the fairy realm that the king and his philosophers have sought to suppress, until one day she must choose between a handsome fairy cursed to love her and the King's Huntress whom she loves.

Boyfriends with Girlfriends by Alex Sanchez (2011) YAFICT SANCHEZ ALEX Boyfrien

When Lance begins to date Sergio, who is bisexual, he is not sure that it will work out, and when his best friend Allie, who has a boyfriend, meets Sergio's lesbian friend, she has unexpected feelings which she struggles to understand.

The Center of the World by Andreas Steinhöfel (2005) YAFICT STEINHOF ANDREAS Center

As he works through his often difficult relationships with his single mother, distant twin sister, his first boyfriend, and an odd assortment of friends, a teenage boy learns about the wounds and healing brought by love.

Damned Strong Love : the True Story of Willi G. and Stephan K. by Lutz van Dijk (1995) YAFICT DIJK, LUTZ VAN Damned s

A story of World War II describes the relationship between sixteen-year-old Stefan, a Pole whose brother was an active member of the Resistance, and Willi, a German soldier, and recounts the devastating responses to their love.

Dare, Truth or Promise by Paula Boock (2007) YPBK B

Louie and Willa, two high school senior girls with little in common and different life plans, find that all their intentions mean little in the face of a love that will lead them to risk everything they thought was important.

Freak Show by James St. James (2008). YAFICT ST JAMES JAMES Freak; YPBK S

Having faced teasing that turned into a brutal attack, Christianity expressed as persecution, and the loss of his only real friend when he could no longer keep his crush under wraps, Billy Bloom, a drag queen extraordinaire, decides the only way to become fabulous again is to run for Homecoming Queen.

Freaks and Revelations by Davida Wills Hurwin (2009). YAFICT HURWIN DAVIDA Freaks

Tells, in two voices, of events leading up to a 1980 incident in which fourteen-year-old Jason, a gay youth surviving on the streets as a prostitute, and seventeen-year-old Doug, a hate-filled punk rocker, have a fateful meeting in a Los Angeles alley.

Geography Club by Brent Hartinger (2002). YAFICT HARTINGE BRENT Geograph; YPBK H

A group of gay and lesbian teenagers finds mutual support when they form the "Geography Club" at their high school.

Grl2grl: Short Fictions by Julie Anne Peters (2007). YAFICT PETERS JULIE AN Grl2grl; YPBK

From the young lesbian taking her first steps toward coming out to the two strangers who lock eyes across a crowded train, from the transgender teen longing for a sense of self, to the girl whose abusive father has turned her to stone, the young women in these short works show the rawness of teenage emotion as they begin to discover the intricacies of love, dating and sexuality.

Gravity by Leanne Lieberman (2008). YPBK L

Afraid that there is no way to be both gay and Jewish, Ellie Gold, an orthodox Jewish teenager feels forced to either alter her sexuality or leave her Jewish community until her mother and sister offer alternative concepts of God that help Ellie find a place for herself.

I Am J by Cris Beam (2011). YAFICT BEAM CRIS I am

J, who feels like a boy mistakenly born as a girl, runs away from his best friend who has rejected him and the parents he thinks do not understand him when he finally decides that it is time to be who he really is.

In Mike We Trust by P. E. Ryan (2009). YAFICT RYAN P E In

As teenage Garth is wrestling with the promise he made his mother to wait a while before coming out, his somewhat secretive uncle shows up unexpectedly for an extended visit.

Keeping You a Secret by Julie Anne Peters (2003) YPBK P

As she begins a very tough last semester of high school, Holland finds herself puzzled about her future and intrigued by a transfer student who wants to start a Lesbigay club at school.

A Love Story Starring My Dead Best Friend (2010) YAFICT HORNER EMILY Love

Reluctantly agreeing to launch a summer musical envisioned by her recently deceased best friend, Cass takes a cross-country bike trip before joining the crew painting sets, during which she falls for Heather, the show's star and a former middle-school nemesis.

Luna by Julie Anne Peters (2004) YAFICT PETERS JULIE Luna

Regan's life, which has always revolved around keeping her older brother Liam's transsexuality a secret, changes when Liam decides to start the process of "transitioning" by first telling his family and friends that he is a girl who was born in a boy's body.

Missed Her by Ivan E. Coyote (2011) YAFICT COYOTE IVAN E Missed

In this story collection, whether discussing the politics of being a butch with a pet lapdog or berating a gay newspaper for considering butches and trans people as "extreme," Ivan traverses issues of gender and identity with a wistful, perceptive eye.

Mousetrap by by Pat Schmatz ; illustrations by Bill Hauser (2008) YAFICT SCHMATZ PAT Mousetra

Grade-school friends Maxie, a cartoonist, and Rick, an inventor, are reunited several years after a gay-bashing incident forced Rick to leave town.

Nothing Pink by Mark Hardy (2008) YAFICT HARDY MARK Nothing

Vincent, the son of a Baptist minister, has always known he is gay and uses his faith to avoid any sinful thoughts or acts, but when his family moves to a new he meets Robert, falls in love, and begins to wonder if God is really asking him to repent and change.

Out of the Pocket by Bill Konigsberg (2008) YAFICT KONIGSBE BILL Out

As Bobby, quarterback of his high school football team, finally admits to himself that he is gay, events start to spin out of control when his sexual orientation is revealed in the student newspaper and then in the local press, and he learns that his father has cancer.

Parrotfish by Ellen Wittlinger (2007) YAFICT WITTLING ELLEN Parrotfi; YPBK W

Grady, a transgendered high school student, yearns for acceptance by his classmates and family as he struggles to adjust to his new identity as a male.

Rage: a Love Story by Julie Anne Peters (2009) YAFICT PETERS JULIE AN Rage

At the end of high school, Johanna finally begins dating the girl she has loved from afar, but Reeve is as much trouble as she claims to be as she and her twin brother damage Johanna's self-esteem, friendships, and already precarious relationship with her sister.

Rainbow Boys by Alex Sanchez (2003) YAFICT SANCHEZ ALEX Rainbow; YPBK S

Three high school seniors, a jock with a girlfriend and an alcoholic father, a closeted gay, and a flamboyant gay rights advocate, struggle with family issues, gay bashers, first sex, and conflicting feelings about each other. Sequels are Rainbow High and Rainbow Road.

She Loves You, She Loves You Not by Julie Ann Peters (2011) NEW YAFICT PETERS JULIE AN She

When seventeen-year-old Alyssa is disowned by her father for being a lesbian, she is sent off to a small town in Colorado to live with the mother she has never known, where she is forced to come to terms with herself and her family.

The Vast Fields of Ordinary by Nick Burd (2011) YAFICT BURD NICK Vast; YPBK B

The summer after graduating from an Iowa high school, eighteen-year-old Dade Hamilton watches his parents' marriage disintegrate, ends his long-term, secret relationship, comes out of the closet, and savors first love.

Vintage: A Ghost Story by Steve Berman (2007) YAFICT BERMAN STEVE Vintage

Walking an empty stretch of highway on a lonely autumn night, a gay teen meets a strange boy who disappears into thin air. What begins as a dream turns into a nightmare as the dangerious obsession of a star athlete killed in 1957 begins to haunt the teen.

Will Grayson, Will Grayson by John Green and David Levithan (2010) YAFICT GREEN JOHN Will; YPBK G

When two teens, one gay and one straight, meet accidentally and discover that they share the same name, their lives become intertwined as one begins dating the other's best friend, who produces a play revealing his relationship with them both.

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