FHS Library - Coming Out

Coming out as a queer person can be a deeply conflicting and powerful time. It deserves to be done in a way that makes you feel supported and empowered. National Coming Out Day honors the anniversary of the National March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights. To showcase this important personal experience, we've curated a list of characters whose stories share the complicated ways in which LGBTQIA+ people come out.

Check out these stories of LGBTQIA+ characters coming out and showing up.

Get Book

I Wish You All the Best

BY MASON DEAVER

When Ben De Backer comes out to their parents as nonbinary, they're thrown out of their house and forced to move in with their estranged older sister, Hannah, and her husband, Thomas, whom Ben has never even met. Struggling with an anxiety disorder compounded by their parents' rejection, they come out only to Hannah, Thomas, and their therapist and try to keep a low profile in a new school.

For readers who: want to see it go wrong, then go so right

Get Book

Juliet Takes a Breath

BY GABBY RIVERA & CELIA MOSCOTE

Juliet Milagros Palante is a self-proclaimed queer Puerto Rican from the Bronx. After coming out to her family the night before flying to Portland, Oregon, to intern with her favorite feminist writer, Juliet's coming out crashes and burns, she's not sure her mom will ever speak to her again.

But Juliet has a plan--sort of. Her internship with legendary author Harlowe Brisbane, the ultimate authority on feminism, women's bodies, and other gay-sounding stuff, is sure to help her figure out this whole "Puerto Rican lesbian" thing. Except Harlowe's white. And not from the Bronx. And she definitely doesn't have all the answers . . .

For readers who: love graphic novels; have a passion for Feminism

Get Book

All Out

BY SAUNDRA MITCHELL

From a retelling of Little Red Riding Hood set in war-torn 1870s Mexico featuring a transgender soldier…to two girls falling in love while mourning the death of Kurt Cobain…to forbidden love in a sixteenth-century Spanish convent…and an asexual girl discovering her identity amid the 1970s roller-disco scene, All Out tells a diverse range of stories across cultures, time periods, and identities, shedding light on an area of history often ignored or forgotten.

For readers who: want a bunch of stories to dive into

Get Book

It Gets Better

BY DAN SAVAGE

Growing up isn't easy. Many young people face daily tormenting and bullying, and this is especially true for LGBTQ kids and teens. In response to a number of tragic suicides by LGBTQ students, syndicated columnist and author Dan Savage uploaded a video to YouTube with his partner, Terry Miller. Speaking openly about the bullying they suffered, and how they both went on to lead rewarding adult lives, their video launched the It Gets Better Project YouTube channel and initiated a worldwide phenomenon.

For readers who: prefer a real-life story

Get Book

The Fire Never Goes Out

BY NOELLE STEVENSON

In a collection of essays and personal mini-comics that span eight years of his young adult life, author-illustrator ND Stevenson charts the highs and lows of being a creative human in the world.

Whether it’s hearing the wrong name called at his art school graduation ceremony or becoming a National Book Award finalist for his debut graphic novel, Nimona, ND captures the little and big moments that make up a real life, with a wit, wisdom, and vulnerability that are all his own.

For readers who: love graphic novel memoirs

Get Book

The Magic Fish

BY TRUNG LE NGUYEN

Tien and his mother may come from different cultures—she’s an immigrant from Vietnam still struggling with English; he’s been raised in America—but through the fairy tales he checks out from the local library, those differences are erased.

But as much as Tien’s mother’s English continues to improve as he reads her tales of love, loss, and travel across distant shores, there’s one conversation that still eludes him—how to come out to her and his father. Is there even a way to explain what he’s going through in Vietnamese? And without a way to reveal his hidden self, how will his parents ever accept him?

For readers who: want an AAPI perspective

Get Book

You Brought Me the Ocean

BY TRUNG LE NGUYEN

Jake Hyde doesn't swim--not since his father drowned. His best friend, Maria, wants nothing more than to stay in the desert, and Jake's mother encourages him to always play it safe.

There's nothing "safe" about Jake's future--not when he's attracted to Kenny Liu, swim team captain and rebel against conformity. And certainly not when he secretly applies to the University of Miami. Jake's life begins to outpace his small town's namesake, which doesn't make it any easier to come out to his mom, or Maria, or the world.

For readers who: watch a lot of superhero movies

Get Book

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.

For readers who: worry about family culture clash with their identity

For more resources on National Coming Out Day, check out this site. For more LGBTQIA+ books, check out the library.

Page updated

Report abuse