There’s been a lot of bad book banning news, but let me highlight a happy story out of Winnipeg: after a group tried to have 2SLGBTQ+ books banned from school libraries, the school board received 300 emails in response. Only six supported the ban, and the ban did not go through. Hell yeah. Let’s bring this energy into the U.S., okay?
Speaking of the freedom to read, today I’m highlighting EveryLibrary, which helps fight back against book bans. You can donate to help out, sign up as a volunteer, or join the mailing list on their homepage to stay up to date.
Check out Book Riot’s newest podcast! BookRiot.com co-founder Jeff O’Neal explores the wide bookish world. Interviews, lists, rankings, retrospectives, recommendations, and much more, featuring people who know and love books. Subscribe to First Edition on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or your podcatcher of choice.
Bookish Goods
![a shirt with a portrait of Jane Austen wearing rainbow sunglasses and the text "More Pride [in rainbow text], less prejudice"](http://newsletters.riotnewmedia.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Screen-Shot-2023-05-26-at-9.37.54-AM-1.png)
More Pride Less Prejudice Shirt by TonyNguyenDesign
Queer (or ally) Jane Austen fans, this one is for you. It’s available as a tee shirt or sweatshirt up to 5XL, as well as in youth sizes. $17
New Releases
Also out this week is today’s sponsor!
An Island Princess Starts a Scandal by Adriana Herrera (F/F Historical Romance)
Manuela has one precious summer before she’s trapped in a loveless marriage. When she gets an offer from Cora, Duchess of Sundridge, to buy a parcel of land Manuela swore she’d never sell, she offers a trade: Manuela will part with the land if Cora lets her spend the summer with her in Paris. She agrees, and they spend those sun-filled days relishing the freedom that Manuela will soon lose. But what if neither of them want to return to their old lives?
The Celebrants by Steven Rowley (Queer Fiction)
Jordan and his boyfriend, Jordy — or “the Jordans,” as a unit — are heading to Big Sur to reunite with college friends Naomi, Craig, and Marielle. It’s been five years since they saw each other last, and they plan to hold “living funerals” to show how much they mean to each other. But Jordan has a secret to reveal that could change everything.
Uranians: Stories by Theodore McCombs (Queer Short Stories)
Chef’s Choice by TJ Alexander (Trans Woman/Trans Man Romance)
Crimes of Passion by Jack Harbon (M/M Romance)
Deeply Devoted To Him by Eskay Kabba (M/M Romance)
That Summer Feeling by Bridget Morrissey (Bisexual F/F Romance)
Siren Queen by Nghi Vo (Queer Fantasy) (Paperback Rerelease)
Heaven Official’s Blessing: Tian Guan Ci Fu (Novel) Vol. 6 by Mo Xiang Tong Xiu (M/M Historical Fantasy)
Obsidian’s GenderQueer/GenreQueer Playground by Duriel E. Harris and Ronaldo V. Wilson (Queer Poetry)
The Male Gazed by Manuel Betancourt (Queer Essays)
We Can Be Heroes: A Survivor’s Story by Paul Burston (Gay Memoir)
Horse Barbie by Geena Rocero (Trans Woman Memoir)
Rainbow Parenting: Your Guide to Raising Queer Kids and Their Allies by Lindz Amer (Queer Nonfiction)
Who Needs Gay Bars?: Bar-Hopping through America’s Endangered LGBTQ+ Places by Greggor Mattson (LGBTQ Nonfiction)
Lesbian Love Story: A Memoir In Archives by Amelia Possanza (Lesbian Nonfiction)
A Very Gay Book: An Inaccurate Resource for Gay Scholars by Jenson Titus and Nic Scheppard (LGBTQ Nonfiction/Humor)
dapperQ Style: Ungendering Fashion by Anita Dolce Vita (Queer Nonfiction)
Gender Magic: Live Shamelessly, Reclaim Your Joy, & Step into Your Most Authentic Self by Rae McDaniel (Trans and Nonbinary Self-Help)
For more new releases, check out our New Books newsletter!
Riot Recommendations
Have you seen how many releases are out this week?? And that’s not even counting the YA and kids’ books I’ll be including in Thursday’s newsletter. So, of course I had to highlight a few more queer books out this week.
Dykes to Watch Out For by Alison Bechdel, narrated by Jane Lynch, Carrie Brownstein, Roxane Gay, et al. (Lesbian Graphic Novel) (Audiobook Rerelease)
I’m always fascinated by audio adaptation of graphic novels, and now, more than 35 years since Dykes To Watch Out For made its debut on paper, it’s getting an audiobook version! Just take a look at some of the narrators — and that’s only a selection of them.
Lesbian Love Story: A Memoir In Archives by Amelia Possanza (Lesbian Nonfiction)
I, like most literary queers, am drawn to the queer histories buried in archives. In Lesbian Love Story, Amelia explores seven lesbian role models she finds in the archives, while adding her own story to the record.
dapperQ Style: Ungendering Fashion by Anita Dolce Vita (Queer Nonfiction)
For queer people, fashion can be gender-affirming, a coded signal to other members of the community, a disguise, and so much more. This book is written by the editor-in-chief of queer fashion magazine dapperQ, and it shows that “no matter your gender identity, race, body size, ability, age, or style, queer fashion is for everyone.”
All the Links Fit to Click
First they came for the LGBTQ+ books: How the Nazis started burning books 90 years ago this month
Nationwide Rise in Book Challenges of LGBTQ+ Books Led by Only 11 People
LGBTQ Reads celebrated Pan Visibility Day with this list of pansexual books!
Trans YA Books for Your 2023 TBR Pile
Read and Listen to Girls Like Girls by Hayley Kiyoko Book Excerpt
That’s it for me this week! Until next time, you can find me at my sapphic book blog the Lesbrary and (sigh) Twitter. You can also hear me on All the Books or you can read my Book Riot posts.
Happy reading!
Danika