Pride Month 2020: LGBTQIA+ Audiobooks

“I cannot get over how thoroughly I enjoyed this book. So much so, that I accidentally took a 45 minute detour on a route I know like the back of my hand, because I was so utterly engrossed in it (It's true, ask my family who were wondering why I was so delayed). Stamper has perfectly captured the space race of the 50s & 60s and brought it into our modern social media ethos. And that just barely scratches the surface. You've got one of the sweetest romances I've ever read between Cal & Leon, a super believable bad guy (screw you, Josh), and convincing & ever-evolving family dynamics. But most striking to me was the conversation surrounding mental health (depression in particular) and how incredibly relatable Cal's need to fix things was. His mother's words "Don't aim to fix people. Fixing seems so permanent, so absolute. Like there's no room for error. Aim to make things better.” continue to stick with me long after the last page (or minute rather, since I listened on Libro.fm). I could go on, but you're better off just reading it yourself. ”

“Dieselpunk dystopian queer-positive YA Western is a mouthful, but Sarah Gailey can say it with aplomb: this short novel about a youngster fleeing an oppressive, intolerant town and father captures something universal. Esther starts out a people pleaser, but during her wild ride, she shows that what she has learned about pathologically controlling behavior has made her a keen observer. When the Resistance turns out to include both the good and the dangerous, she's able to recognize both. She's no chosen child or supergirl, but when she uses her experience to inform her morals and her actions, she discovers that it's useful to resist even in slow and steady ways, though it may not (immediately) change the world.”

“To say I admire The Knockout Queen feels inadequate, though I do admire a great deal of it: its voice, depth, structure — you name it. But it’s more honest just to say I love The Knockout Queen; I loved reading it, I felt involved in it, and, finally, I was so moved by its ending. This is an epic tale of friendship, one where the magnitude sneaks up on you quietly — but when it strikes home, it rings so brilliantly true.”

“Some books change you, fundamentally alter something about who you are, how you think, how you feel. Whether it's a new feeling, or that they've opened your eyes to a part of yourself that you weren't aware of, I'm not sure, but what I do know is that Call Me By Your Name was, for me, one of those books. Even through the adolescent language and intensity of the protagonist, or perhaps because of it, this book made me feel something entirely new, or helped me to feel something old in a new way. It takes you back to the intense feelings of longing, of youthful attraction and obsession, and somehow does so both with bluntness and incredible prose. This was my second read (listen) of Call Me By Your Name, and it meant something more and something different this time through, and I imagine that this is that kind of book. The kind that no matter how many times I read it will become something new and something differently important upon every read.”

“This memoir by black and gay poet Saeed Jones is a visceral coming of age and coming out story. Growing up as an only child to his single mother in Texas and spending summers with his evangelical grandmother in Memphis, Jones struggles to come to terms with his sexuality, to come out of the closet, and to love himself. He wrestles with his fractured identity, learning what it means to be gay in the black community, to be black in the gay community, and to realize that either one on its own is enough to get you killed in a straight, white world. There are passages that will bruise and choke you, but ultimately both Jones and the reader come out of the book all the better for it.”

“The twelve Black British women who are the central characters in Bernardine Evaristo's GIRL, WOMAN, OTHER are so vastly different that when their connections are slowly revealed, like a spider web you didn't see until the light hits it just so, you'll settle in and become entranced. I loved this deep dive into a part of British culture that isn't often depicted. The form is unusual but once you give yourself over to it, you'll see why it works. I particularly loved the last part of the book which reminded me of enjoying a long leisurely meal and still leaving room for the perfect dessert. The ending was terribly satisfying. Highly recommend.”

“The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue by Mackenzi Lee was truly a pleasure to hear! A deliciously dry sense of humor pervades this tale of English landed gentry making a tour of the Continent in the 1800s. However, this is no ordinary tour and these no ordinary lords. Unrequited love among the two male protagonists, a racial twist, parental abuse, maladies with no cures and more pervade this fast paced, adventurous novel complete with highwaymen, dukes, alchemy and pirates (sort of). Impossible to stop listening and extremely entertaining!”