Favorite LGBTQIA Books

This week for Pride month, I want to talk about my favorite LGBTQ books. While trying to come up with a list, I realized I haven’t actually read a great many LGBTQ books. In most of the books I read, LGBTQ themes are more of a side plot point, not necessarily the book’s main theme.

Which is sad, and I mean to make my reading a little more inclusive and diverse. That said, the list of books below deal with LGBTQ themes in a very nice way, and I would recommend them highly as great books to understand a bit more about the LGBTQ experience.

1. A Song of Ice and Fire series by George R.R.Martin – Everyone has heard of these books. It’s all high-fantasy, but there is a nice little side-plot about the kingdom of Dorne, and its ruler Oberyn Martell – a bisexual badass who makes a nice guest appearance in the series.
2. The Ministry of Utmost Happiness by Arundhati Roy – I love this book. It’s so inclusive and humanist, and it makes me cry even now when I think of Aftab – the intersex protagonist of our book and their struggle to make a life.
3. A Brief History of Seven Killings – This is a book about the mafia in Jamaica, not really about the LGBTQ experience as such. But Marlon James does explore the themes of masculinity and homosexuality of two characters and their struggles with self-acceptance to fit into their society.
4. Tipping the Velvet by Sarah Waters – This is the first of many Sarah Waters books that make it into this list. She is one of my all-time favorite authors and this lesbian romp in Victorian England is eye-opening and fun!
5. Fun Home by Alison Bechdel – This graphic novel memoir by Alison Bechdel (yes, she of the Bechdel test) is something I have yet to read. I put it on this list confidently because I know I am going to love it.
6. The Vampire Lestat by Anne Rice – I read this novel way back when, and my memory is a little hazy by now. This is probably the first gay book I read, and so it automatically makes its way onto this list.
7. The Night Watch by Sarah Waters – My second Sarah Waters book. I love the variety of her books. This book is set in post-war London where three women try to live their lives in a world that has changed rapidly. I don’t want to give too many details but the structure of this novel is one of the most original I have ever seen, and really builds a sense of suspense.
8. Fingersmith by Sarah Waters – This is my last Sarah Waters book in this list. And my favorite. It combines suspense, and a sweet and intense love story. If you love gothic novels, this is a must read.
9. Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides – This book is a coming of age story about an intersex protagonist – Cal. The first half of the novel is about Cal’s family and depicts his grandparents’ migration from Greece to the United States in 1922. It follows their assimilation into U.S. society in Detroit, Michigan, then a booming industrial city. The latter half of the novel, set in the late 20th century, focuses on Cal’s experiences in his hometown of Detroit and his escape to San Francisco, where he comes to terms with his modified gender identity.
10. The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K.Le Guin – This is a wonderful science fiction novel that explores the themes of gender and identity. A stranger from another planet visits a world where gender does not exist. In a world where gender does not exist, how do people relate to each other?

What LGBTQ books are your favorites? Which ones would you recommend to me?