Review: Gender Queer by Maia Kobabe

Gender Queer by Maia Kobabe

Gender Queer
Maia Kobabe
Lion Forge Comics
Published May 28, 2019

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About Gender Queer

In 2014, Maia Kobabe, who uses e/em/eir pronouns, thought that a comic of reading statistics would be the last autobiographical comic e would ever write. At the time, it was the only thing e felt comfortable with strangers knowing about em. Now, GENDER QUEER is here.

Maia’s intensely cathartic autobiography charts eir journey of self-identity, which includes the mortification and confusion of adolescent crushes, grappling with how to come out to family and society, bonding with friends over erotic gay fanfiction, and … Continue reading

Review: Gone Wolf by Amber McBride

Gone Wolf by Amber McBride cover shows a girl with curly hair and dark skin. A pair of light-skinned hands cover her eyes. The eyes of a wolf appear over her collar bones.

Gone Wolf
Amber McBride
Feiwel & Friends
Published October 3, 2023

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About Gone Wolf

Award-winning author Amber McBride lays bare the fears of being young and Black in America, in this middle-grade novel that has been compared to the work of Jordan Peele and praised as ” brilliantly inventive storytelling” by Publishers Weekly.

In the future, a Black girl known only as Inmate Eleven is kept confined — to be used as … Continue reading

Review: The Black Flamingo by Dean Atta

The Black Flamingo by Dean Atta

The Black Flamingo
Dean Atta
Balzer + Bray
Published May 26, 2020 (orig. 2019)

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About The Black Flamingo

A fierce coming-of-age verse novel about identity and the power of drag, from acclaimed poet and performer Dean Atta. Perfect for fans of Elizabeth Acevedo, Jason Reynolds, and Kacen Callender.

Michael is a mixed-race gay teen growing up in London. All his life, he’s navigated what it means to be Greek-Cypriot and Jamaican—but never quite feeling Greek or Black enough.

As he gets older, Michael’s coming out is only the start of learning who he is and where he fits in. When he discovers the Drag Society, … Continue reading

Review: The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley

The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley

The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie (Flavia de Luce #1)
Alan Bradley
Delacorte Press
Published April 24, 2009

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Indiebound | Goodreads

About The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie

It is the summer of 1950–and at the once-grand mansion of Buckshaw, young Flavia de Luce, an aspiring chemist with a passion for poison, is intrigued by a series of inexplicable events: A dead bird is found on the doorstep, a postage stamp bizarrely pinned to its beak. Then, hours later, … Continue reading

Review: Starfish by Akemi Dawn Bowman

Starfish by Akemi Dawn Bowman cover shows white jellyfish, sea turtle, and fish on dark background.

Starfish
Akemi Dawn Bowman
Simon Pulse
Published September 26, 2017

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

About STARFISH

A half-Japanese teen grapples with social anxiety and her narcissist mother in the wake of a crushing rejection from art school in this debut novel.

Kiko Himura has always had a hard time saying exactly what she’s thinking. With a mother who makes her feel unremarkable and a half-Japanese heritage she doesn’t quite understand, Kiko prefers to keep her head down, … Continue reading

Review: Hurricane Season by Nicole Melleby

Hurricane Season by Nicole Melleby

Hurricane Season
Nicole Melleby
Algonquin Young Readers
Available May 7, 2019

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

About HURRICANE SEASON

Fig, a sixth grader, wants more than anything to see the world as her father does. The once-renowned pianist, who hasn’t composed a song in years and has unpredictable good and bad days, is something of a mystery to Fig. Though she’s a science and math nerd, she tries taking an art class just to be closer to him, to experience life the way an artist does. But then Fig’s dad shows up … Continue reading