Book Recommendations

"A Queer History of the United States for Young People" by Michael Bronski

Queer history didn’t start with Stonewall. This book explores how LGBTQ people have always been a part of our national identity, contributing to the country and culture for over 400 years. Through engrossing narratives, letters, drawings, poems, and more, the book encourages young readers, of all identities, to feel pride at the accomplishments of the LGBTQ people who came before them and to use history as a guide to the future.

"Anger is a Gift" by Mark Oshiro

Moss Jeffries is many things―considerate student, devoted son, loyal friend and affectionate boyfriend, enthusiastic nerd. But sometimes Moss still wishes he could be someone else. And most of all, he wishes he didn’t feel so stuck. Moss can’t even escape at school. It seems sometimes that the students are treated more like criminals. Something will have to change―but who will listen to a group of teens? When tensions hit a fever pitch and tragedy strikes again, Moss must face a difficult choice: give in to fear and hate or realize that anger can actually be a gift.

"Cemetery Boys" by Aiden Thomas

Yadriel has summoned a ghost, and now he can't get rid of him. When his traditional Latinx family has problems accepting his true gender, Yadriel becomes determined to prove himself a real brujo. However, the ghost he summons is actually Julian Diaz, the school's resident bad boy, and Julian is not about to go quietly into death. Left with no choice, Yadriel agrees to help Julian, so that they can both get what they want. But the longer Yadriel spends with Julian, the less he wants to let him leave.

"Gender Queer" by Maia Kobabe

This intensely cathartic autobiography charts Maia Kobabe's journey of self-identity, which includes the mortification and confusion of adolescent crushes, grappling with how to come out to family and society, bonding with friends over erotic gay fanfiction, and facing the trauma and fundamental violation of pap smears. Started as a way to explain to eir family what it means to be nonbinary and asexual, "Gender Queer" is more than a personal story: it is a useful and touching guide on gender identity—what it means and how to think about it—for advocates, friends, and humans everywhere.

"Heartstopper" series by Alice Oseman

Boy meets boy. Boys become friends. Boys fall in love. The bestselling LGBTQ+ graphic novels about life, love, and everything that happens in between. Charlie and Nick are at the same school, but they've never met until one day when they're made to sit together. They quickly become friends, and soon Charlie is falling hard for Nick, even though he doesn't think he has a chance. But love works in surprising ways, and Nick is more interested in Charlie than either of them realized.

"Last Night at the Telegraph Club" by Malinda Lo

Seventeen-year-old Lily Hu can't remember exactly when the feeling took root—that desire to look, to move closer, to touch. Whenever it started growing, it definitely bloomed the moment she and Kathleen Miller walked under the flashing neon sign of a lesbian bar called the Telegraph Club. Suddenly everything seemed possible. But America in 1954 is not a safe place for two girls to fall in love, especially not in Chinatown. Red-Scare paranoia threatens everyone, including Chinese Americans like Lily. With deportation looming over her father—despite his hard-won citizenship—Lily and Kath risk everything to let their love see the light of day.

"Pet" by Akwaeke Emezi

There are no monsters anymore, or so the children in the city of Lucille are taught. Jam and her best friend, Redemption, have grown up with this lesson all their life. But when Jam meets Pet, a creature made of horns and colors and claws, who emerges from one of her mother's paintings and a drop of Jam's blood, she must reconsider what she's been told. Pet has come to hunt a monster--and the shadow of something grim lurks in Redemption's house. Jam must fight not only to protect her best friend, but also uncover the truth, and the answer to the question How do you save the world from monsters if no one will admit they exist?

"The Henna Wars" by Adiba Jaigirdar

When Nishat comes out to her parents, they say she can be anyone she wants—as long as she isn’t herself. Because Muslim girls aren't lesbians. Nishat doesn’t want to hide who she is, but she also doesn’t want to lose her relationship with her family. And her life only gets harder once a childhood friend walks back into her life. Flávia is beautiful and charismatic and Nishat falls for her instantly. But when a school competition invites students to create their own businesses, both Flávia and Nishat choose to do henna, even though Flávia is appropriating Nishat’s culture. But Nishat can’t quite get rid of her crush on Flávia, and realizes there might be more to her than she realized.

"The Stars and the Blackness Between Them" by Junauda Petrus

The story of two black girls from very different backgrounds finding love and happiness in a world that seems determined to deny them both. Audre just found out she’s going to be sent to live in America with her father because her strictly religious mother caught her with her secret girlfriend, the pastor’s daughter. Mabel is trying to figure out why she feels the way she feels—about her girl Jada and about the vague feeling of illness that’s plagued her all summer. Mabel quickly falls hard for Audre and is determined to take care of her as she tries to navigate an American high school. But their romance takes a turn when test results reveal exactly why Mabel has been feeling sick all summer.

"Ziggy, Stardust, and Me" by James Brandon

The year is 1973. Homosexuality is still officially considered a mental illness. Jonathan, a bullied, anxious, asthmatic sixteen-year-old, escapes to the safe haven of his imagination to cope. There his hero David Bowie’s Ziggy Stardust and dead relatives guide him through the rough terrain of his life. When he completes his treatments, he will be "normal" and not a boy who likes boys—at least he hopes. But before that can happen, Web stumbles into his life: fearless, fearsome and, most importantly, not ashamed of being gay. Web is the first person in the real world to see Jonathan completely and think he’s perfect. For the first time in his life, Jonathan may finally feel free enough to love and accept himself as he is.

Resources

Cryptids in the Closet

The Queer & Trans Youth Council of Santa Cruz County has created this website to provide closeted LGBTQIA+ youth with informational resources. We wanted a website with a URL that wouldn’t alert guardians to the content you are viewing, so we chose CryptidsInTheCloset.com and our cover page is about cryptids. Our intent with building this website was to provide a safe place for closeted youth.

Glossary of LGBTQ+ terms

The Human Rights Campaign's glossary was written to help give people the words and meanings to help make conversations easier and more comfortable. LGBTQ+ people use a variety of terms to identify themselves, not all of which are included in this glossary. Always listen for and respect a person’s self identified terminology.

The Trevor Project

The Trevor Project is the world’s largest suicide prevention and crisis intervention organization for LGBTQ young people. Our vision is a world where all LGBTQ young people see a bright future for themselves.