Pride and Less Prejudice:
LGBTQ+ Books for Teens
by Laura Lambert
We’ve come a long way from the hubbub over Heather Has Two Mommies— the 1989 picture book about lesbian moms that became one of the most challenged books of the 1990s. Books no longer simply assert that gay parents — or gay people, for that matter — merely exist.
In our post-DOMA, Caitlyn Jenner landscape, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and questioning kids star in stories of all kinds — and kids of all kinds are seeking them out, to see a reflection of their own lived experiences, in all its diverse glory. These YA LGBTQ+ books are a beautiful batch of rainbow stories — with those characters front and center (i.e. decidedly not the stereotypical sidekick) or queer characters that do things above and beyond being gay.
You know, more like real life.
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The Breakup List
Buy from:Jackson Ghasnavi, a non-romantic stage manager, finds himself grappling with unexpected feelings for Liam, the leading man of the school musical. But isn't Liam straight? Should he be having feelings for the same guy his sister does? Despite all this, Jackson can't help feeling like there's a connection. This is a slow burn romance like you've never read before!
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Felix Yz
Buy from:Felix Yz is silly in tone and sci-fi in genre. The main character, Felix, is, incidentally, gay. His grandparent is, incidentally, gender fluid — and goes by the neutral name Grandy. The plot centers on a scientific mishap. But the LGBTQ characters in this book are by design.
The author, Lisa Bunker, is herself a trans woman. She wrote, “Felix represents the start of my long-term project as an author to create good stories featuring LGBTQ characters without that being The Point, in hopes of expanding readers’ definition of the word ‘normal’ in an empowering and inclusive way.”
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The Quiet and the Loud
Buy from:George puts herself last and everyone else first. Through the story, she tries to juggle the weight of healing from the abuse her father caused her, having a best friend who's about to become a mother, and caring for her family, all while her city, Sydney, Australia, goes up in flames due to climate change. A healing, cathartic story with lyrical writing and a message of hope that readers will surely adore.
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The Rebel’s Guide to Pride
Buy from:Newly out as gay, Zeke is still trying to find his place and identity in school. When his friends suggest that he help plan Pride Day, he jumps at the chance. But when the mayor of his small Alabama town announces an ordinance that cancels all LGBTQ+ celebrations, Zeke takes matters into his own hands and plans a series of underground “Pride Speakeasies.” As the speakeasies popularity grows, so does the drama, and Zeke will need to decide who he is and what he stands for. Inspiring and bold this book is a great lesson in finding your village and your place.
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We Are Okay
Buy from:This quiet, poetic book is a moody meditation on grief and friendship with serious queer undertones. LaCour is no newcomer to LGBTQ themes — Everything Leads to You and You Know Me Well were about queer relationships — but We Are Okay didn’t start out with a queer story line. As LaCour told Pop Sugar, “Once it was in there, then I really enjoyed exploring it, especially Mabel's sexuality because it is really fluid. I don't define them in the story. I don't label them. Personally, I like ‘queer’ the best because many people are very fluid and that's the term that I feel most comfortable with. I think it's a really inclusive term. That Mabel is currently in a relationship with a guy and has been in a relationship with Marin, I wanted to really explore how both of those relationships matter a lot to her and they were both equally as valid.”
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History Is All You Left Me
Buy from:Another beautifully written heartbreaker on love and loss, this YA novel by Adam Silvera (his second) will give readers all the feels. The main character, Griffin, has lost his ex-boyfriend, Theo, in a terrible accident — and is piecing his life together in the aftermath, on top of his OCD. Silvera has crafted a nuanced gay love story. He told Entertainment Weekly, “I wanted to just show that bisexuals exist. If [Theo]’s not 100 percent sure, that’s also important. He’s at the age where he’s figuring out his sexuality, and he’s just currently identifying as bisexual. Maybe at 20, if he’d been around to be alive, he would have identified as just gay.”
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10 Things I Can See From Here
Buy from:This is summer love, with a twist or two. The main character, Maeve, is managing serious anxiety when she learns that she has to make an unwelcome move to Vancouver to live with her father, an alcoholic, for several months. Once there, Maeve also meets and falls for Salix, who is anything but anxious. The dynamics in Maeve’s new life are complicated to say the least. Kirkus puts it thusly: “Her story provides a much needed mirror for anxious queer girls everywhere.”
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Say a Little Prayer
Buy from:Riley stopped going to church when it felt like she lost the support of her community after she came out as bi. But when the local pastor — and her best friend Julia’s dad — shames her sister, Riley is determined to burn it all down. After an incident in school gets her sent to the principal’s office, she is given the choice to either spend spring break at church camp or get suspended. But instead of spending the week embracing the church’s “virtues,” Riley decides that she is going to commit all seven deadly sins. Can she start a righteous revolution?
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Her Royal Highness
Buy from:Millie Quint has had enough of Texas. Or perhaps more specifically, she’s had enough of her sort-of-girlfriend making out with someone else. Understandably, Millie jumps at the chance to attend an elite Scottish boarding school, where she’s assigned a room with Flora, an actual Scottish princess who’s a total snob and paparazzi magnet. But as the two begrudgingly get to know each other, they realize their first impressions were mistaken, and Millie starts to wonder if there might be a happily ever after in her future after all.
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A Line in the Dark
Buy from:A queer YA mystery-thriller by three-time finalist for the Lambda Literary Award Malinda Lo, who is perhaps best known for her novel Last Night at the Telegraph Club. A Line in the Dark centers on three queer girls — Jess Wong, Angie Redmond, and Margot Adams — and the blurry lines between friendship, love, and obsession. It’s a dark, dramatic tale that Lo pursues readily. And she told the queer women’s blog Autostraddle, “I know that in the past (and sadly sometimes now), lesbians have been written stereotypically as predatory and villainous. Those stereotypes are decidedly harmful, but I believe it’s important to reject them not by writing solely morally pure and good queer characters in response, but by showing queer characters in all their human complexity.”
RELATED: Captivating YA Thrillers To Read This Summer
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Hot Dog Girl
Buy from:A delightfully entertaining read, this coming-of-age queer romance features the highs of first love, the lows of first jobs, and a group of costumed teens determined to save their amusement-park workplace. Jennifer Dugan crafts a fully realized, complex bi character in Lou Parker — AKA “the hotdog girl” of Magic Castle Playland — and the rest of the crew (including a pirate, a princess, and a carousel operator) are equally charming. Becky Albertalli, author of the beloved YA rainbow read Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda, called herself “wrecked with love for this funny, joyful, bighearted book.”
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Somadina
Buy from:Somadina and her twin brother, Jayaike, are incredibly close. But when their magical gifts begin to emerge, Jayaike’s powers enchant, while Somadina’s cause fear in their village. To make matters worse, her brother vanishes overnight and Somadina begins a journey to track him down, encountering many dangers along the way. An incredibly powerful story about family, magic, and learning to be confident in yourself.
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Nate Plus One
From the author of Date Me, Bryson Keller comes another adorable boy-meets-boy rom-com that will steal your heart. Music, a destination wedding, and secret crushes combine into an irresistibly feel-good story about two best friends falling in love.
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Every Day
Buy from:A is a teen who wakes up every day in a different body, living a different life. This seems to work for A until he meets Rhiannon and everything changes. David Levithan’s novel is so creative and accurately depicts what it feels like when you don't know where you belong and how grounding it can be to find the people who make you feel like you’re home.
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These Witches Don’t Burn
Buy from:Rather than the beginning of a new relationship or the start of questioning one’s sexual identity and preferences, Isabel Sterling offers up a story about the aftermath of a queer relationship — set to the backdrop of a thrilling, witchy mystery. “Many YA novels tackle falling in love for the first time,” Sterling writes, “but far fewer (especially at the time I was drafting back in 2015) deal with breakups, particularly for queer girls. Rebel Belle by Rachel Hawkins was one of the first YA novels I read where an established couple breaks up, and I really loved that. When it came time to write These Witches Don’t Burn, it was really satisfying to explore the messiness of a breakup.” Even as exes, Hannah and Veronica work well together, protecting Salem from the dark magic of a Blood Witch.
RELATED: Witchy YA Books Sure To Put a Spell on You
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HappyHead
Buy from:A dystopian take on the mental health crisis facing many teens today, HappyHead follows Seb who has been chosen for a new experimental health center called HappyHead. Here, he and his fellow participants complete a series of assessments to help them better face the outside world. But is something more sinister at play?
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Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in 2019 and updated in 2025.