Pride!

When Aidan, the trans boy character in Kyle Lukoff’s When Aidan Became a Brother (Lee & Low, 2019), was born, everyone assumed he was a girl. Now Aidan’s parents are expecting a new baby – and as they design the new nursery, Aidan worries that the new baby will be misunderstood like he was. Supportive parents explain that mistakes might be made – but they can always be fixed. For ages 4-7.

By Jessica Herthel I Am Jazz (Dial, 2014) is a picture-book account of real-life transgender kid Jazz Jennings, who knew from toddlerhood that she had a girl’s brain in a boy’s body. For ages 4-8.

In Alex Gino’s George (Scholastic, 2017), George may seem like a boy – but she knows in her heart that she’s a girl. Which is why she wants to play Charlotte in the class production of Charlotte’s Web. For ages 8-12.

Also by Gino, see Rick (Scholastic, 2020) in which Rick, despite a lot of pressure from his dad and his best friend, ends up in the school’s Rainbow Spectrum club where he meets Melissa (once George) and begins to explore his own identity. For ages 8-12.

In M.G. Hennessey’s The Other Boy (HarperCollins, 2019), Shane was born a girl, but knows he’s really a boy. When Shane and his mother move from San Francisco to Los Angeles in middle school, Shane socially transitions to living as a boy – though his father refuses to allow him the testosterone injections that would take him through male puberty. Inevitably Shane’s secret comes out – though Alejandra, a Latina trans girl, gives him the support he needs. For ages 9-12.

In Cat Clarke’s The Pants Project (Sourcebooks, 2019), 11-year-old Liv (not Olivia) knows he was always meant to be a boy – but the school’s conservative dress code is forcing him to wear skirts. So Liv institutes the Pants Project. Issues of gender identity, bullying, acceptance and respect, and social justice. For ages 9-13.

In Lisa Bunker’s Zenobia July (Viking, 2019), Zenobia – who used to live in Arizona with her dad – has moved to Maine to live with her aunts. There, though she’s previously been thought to be a boy, she’s coming out as a girl – but now has to combat cruel memes about her past that start popping up on her new school’s website. Luckily Zenobia is a kickass hacker. For ages 10-13.

Ami Polonsky’s Gracefully Grayson (Little, Brown, 2016) tackles the question of “What if who you are on the outside doesn’t match who you are on the inside?” Grayson Sender, born as a boy, is really a girl. Kirkus calls this one “a kind and earnest look at a young transgender adolescent’s experience.” For ages 10-14.

In Donna Gephart’s Lily and Dunkin (Yearling, 2018), Lily (born Timothy), a transgender girl, and Dunkin (born Norbert), who has bipolar disorder, forge a wonderful relationship. In a tree. For ages 10 and up.

By Rob Sanders, Stonewall (Random House, 2019) is a picture-book story of the 1969 raid on the Stonewall Inn in New York city and the beginning of the gay rights movement. A powerful civil rights story for ages 5-8.

By Rob Sanders, Pride: The Story of Harvey Milk and the Rainbow Flag (Random House, 2018) is the picture-book account of Harvey Milk’s defense of gay rights and the design of the rainbow flag that became the symbol and inspiration of a political movement. A good introduction for ages 5-8.

Make your own rainbow flag! See instructions here.

By Joy Michael Ellison, Sylvia and Marsha Start a Revolution (Jessica Kingsley Publishers, 2020) is the story of activists Sylvia Rivera and Marsha Johnson, both trans women of color, who found for respect and equality for the LGTBQ community. For ages 7-10.

Nico Medina’s What Was Stonewall? (Penguin Workshop, 2019) is the story of how a spontaneous protest that arose at New York City’s Stonewall Inn led to the powerful LGBTQ rights movement in the U.S. For ages 8-12.

Jerome Pohlem’s Gay and Lesbian History for Kids (Chicago Review Press, 2015) is an overview of the century-long struggle for LGBTQ rights. Included are a timeline, capsule biographies, historical photographs, and 21 hands-on activities. For ages 9 and up.

Meg-John Barker’s Queer: A Graphic History (Icon Books, 2016) is a well-done overview for ages 16 and up.

Rebecca Strickson’s Queerstory (Tiller Press, 2020) is a beautifully designed infographic history of the LGBTQ movement for teens and adults.

Mason Funk’s The Book of Pride (HarperOne, 2019) covers the leaders, activists, and others who fought for the gay pride movement from the 1960s to the present. Subtitled “LGBTQ Heroes Who Changed the World.” For teens and adults.

See this annotated LGBTQ Rights Timeline in American History.

LGBT History has a long list of interesting historical articles and stories – among them “What Happened at the Stonewall Riots?.” “The Supreme Court Rulings That Have Shaped Gay Rights in America,” and “The Pink Triangle.”