LGBTQIA+ Book List

Over the past few years, we have witnessed a growing wave of anti-LGBTQ+ bills and policies across the United States. According to the ACLU, in 2023 alone, 507 anti-LGBTQ bills were proposed in 47 states; among these, 84 have been passed into law.

The targets of many of these legislative attacks have been the most vulnerable among us—transgender and LGBTQ+ youth. From “Don’t Say Gay” laws to healthcare restrictions, anti-LGBTQ+ policies are impacting trans and queer youth in almost every sphere of their lives, including the medical care they can access, the sports teams they can play on, what they are allowed to talk about in the classroom, and the books they are allowed to check out from the library. The results of this discrimination are often deadly, with over half of transgender and non-binary youth seriously contemplating suicide, and many others falling victim to violent hate crimes inspired by this hostile climate.

Trans Kids, Our Kids: Stories and Resources from the Frontlines of the Movement for Transgender Youth shares the stories of transgender youth and their families, exploring the choices they are making to survive in today's environment. The book also gives voice to the medical providers who are providing care to transgender youth, as well as the activists, teachers and faith leaders who are leading the resistance efforts.

By contextualizing and sharing these stories, as well as offering resources and next steps, Trans Kids aims to both narrativize the pain and fear experienced by everyday Americans in this cultural moment, as well as highlighting the courage, hope, and resilience of transgender and LGBTQ+ youth, their families, and the people who support them.

Armed with only six passages in the Bible―often known as the "Clobber Passages"―the conservative Christian position has been one that stands against the full inclusion of our LGBTQ siblings. UnClobber reexamines each of those frequently quoted passages of Scripture, alternating with author Colby Martin's own story of being fired from an evangelical megachurch when they discovered his stance on sexuality.

UnClobber reexamines what the Bible says (and does not say) about homosexuality in such a way that sheds divine light on outdated and inaccurate assumptions and interpretations. This new edition equips study groups and congregations with questions for discussion and a sermon series guide for preachers.

In 2014, Time magazine announced that America had reached “the transgender tipping point,” suggesting that transgender issues would become the next civil rights frontier. Years later, many people—even many LGBTQIA+ allies—still lack understanding of gender identity and the transgender experience. Into this void, trans biblical scholar Austen Hartke brings a biblically based, educational, and affirming resource to shed light and wisdom on gender expansiveness and Christian theology. This new edition offers updated terminology and statistics, plus new materials for congregational study, preaching, and pastoral care.

Transforming deftly weaves ancient and modern stories that will change the way readers think about gender, the Bible, and the faith to which Jesus calls us. Hartke helps readers visualize a more inclusive Christianity, equipping them with the language, understanding, confidence, and tools to change both the church and the world.

A timely second edition of the classic text on transgender history, with a new introduction and updated material throughout.

Covering American transgender history from the mid-twentieth century to today, Transgender History takes a chronological approach to the subject of transgender history, with each chapter covering major movements, writings, and events. Chapters cover the transsexual and transvestite communities in the years following World War II; trans radicalism and social change, which spanned from 1966 with the publication of The Transsexual Phenomenon, and lasted through the early 1970s; the mid-'70s to 1990, the era of identity politics and the changes witnessed in trans circles through these years; and the gender issues witnessed through the '90s and '00s.

Transgender History includes informative sidebars highlighting quotes from major texts and speeches in transgender history and brief biographies of key players, plus excerpts from transgender memoirs and discussion of treatments of transgenderism in popular culture.

The bestselling young adult non-fiction book on sexuality and gender! Lesbian. Gay. Bisexual. Transgender. Queer. Intersex. Straight. Curious. This book is for everyone, regardless of gender or sexual preference. This book is for anyone who's ever dared to wonder. This book is for YOU.

This candid, funny, and uncensored exploration of sexuality and what it's like to grow up LGBTQ also includes real stories from people across the gender and sexual spectrums, not to mention hilarious illustrations.

Inside this revised and updated edition, you'll find the answers to all the questions you ever wanted to ask. You will be entertained. You will be informed. But most importantly, you will know that however you identify (or don't) and whomever you love, you are exceptional. You matter. And so does this book.

This book is for:

-LGBTQIA+ teens, tweens, and adults
-Readers looking to learn more about the LGBTQIA+ community
-Parents of gay kids and other LGBT youth
-Educators looking for advice about the LGBTQIA+ community

Josey's note: This book contains a chapter that is essentially sex-ed for queer teens. It is done in an honest, humorous, and age-appropriate way for kids over 13+, but it is sex-ed - it is explicit. 

Be a part of the ever-evolving conversation around gender and discover how to navigate gender diversity in today’s families, communities, and workplaces in this updated edition that is “an invaluable resource for both new and veteran allies” (Library Journal, starred review).

Gender is now a global conversation, and one that is constantly evolving. More people than ever before are openly living their lives as transgender men or women, and many transgender people are coming out as neither men nor women, instead living outside the binary. Gender is changing, and this change is gaining momentum.

From the differences among gender identity, gender expression, and sex, to the use of gender-neutral pronouns like singular they/them to thinking about your own participation in gender, Gender: Your Guide, 2nd Edition serves as a complete primer to all things gender. Guided by professor and gender diversity advocate Lee Airton, PhD, learn how gender works in everyday life; how to use accurate terminology to refer to transgender, nonbinary, and/or gender nonconforming individuals; and how to ask when you aren’t sure what to do or say. It provides you with the information you need to talk confidently and compassionately about gender diversity, whether simply having a conversation or going to bat as an advocate. In this updated edition, Dr. Airton explores updated definitions of intersex people, conversion therapy bans, transgender students in sports, online and social community discussions, updated pop culture references, and much more.

Just like gender itself, being gender-friendly is a process for all of us. Gender: Your Guide, 2nd Edition invites everyone on board to make gender more flexible and less constricting: a source of more joy, and less harm, for everyone.