A Deluge of New Queer Books and Queer Book News

It’s hard to overstate the impact that this book had when it first came out in 2013. Unfortunately, its publisher closed and the title has been out of print for years. Now it’s finally back, with a new afterword from the author. It’s a story that is uninterested in appealing to a cis audience, with a cynical and messy main character who steals her ex-girlfriend’s car to take a spontaneous cross-country road trip. This is one of my favorite books, and it earns its spot on the Most Influential Queer Books of All Time list. I talk more about it in this week’s episode of All the Books.

One of the most anticipated queer books of the year, this is a reimagining of The Iliad with a trans woman main character that looks perfect for fans of The Song of Achilles. Achilles has fled her home to live as a woman with the kallai, the trans priestesses of Aphrodite. When Odysseus tries to recruit her to fight in the war, she prepares to die rather than fight as a man — which is when Athena intervenes, giving her the body she’s always wanted and promising her even more, including a future pregnancy as well as victory in battle, if she joins the fight.

This is a fascinating short story collection that includes footnotes and essays explaining the research and thought process behind these Métis futurist narratives. At least half of these stories have queer main characters, including one where a queer Indigenous feminist collective co-parent a kid together who is given nanites to make Cree their first language, but is incapable of ever learning any other language. This is a thought-provoking and memorable collection that I loved. I talk more about it in this week’s episode of All the Books.

Inspired by that iconic photo, this is a YA F/F romance between a quarterback and cheerleader. Jack has upended her family to get a chance to be quarterback on a high school team and hopefully, miraculously scouted. But when she shows up, the entire team — and school — seems to be against her. Amber is determined to be head cheerleader, so she’s not going to go against the cheerleading team, but she doesn’t understand the vitriol aimed at Jack. In fact, she can’t deny her attraction to her. I talk more about this compulsively readable novel in this week’s episode of All the Books.

I’ve got to say, I haven’t seen a first line of a description catch my attention quite as much as this one: “A furious, queer debut novel about embracing the monster within and unleashing its power against your oppressors.” Benji is a trans teenager on the run from the cult that raised him — and that brought Armageddon down on the world… and infected him with a bioweapon powerful enough to end humanity. He finds refuge with a group of queer teens, but he soon finds they have their own secrets…

Jade is just about to set off on a make-or-break art intensive to build her portfolio when she gets the news that her best friend, Phoebe, is hospitalized after attempting suicide. Unable to visit or even speak with Phoebe, Jade goes to the the art intensive in a fog of conflicting emotions. This is a powerful graphic novel that’s fundamentally about a teenager stumbling and raging and weeping through something really difficult. I talk more about it in this week’s episode of All the Books.

Based on the Academy Award short-listed film of the same name, this tells an Indigenous Hawaiian story of four powerful Mahu, who have both male and female spirits, who passed on their healing powers through four boulders placed on Waikiki beach — and how their story has been suppressed over centuries. It is written in Hawaiian and English.