3 Essential LGBTQ+ Books for Queer Empowerment During Pride Month
Good queer books are hard to find, with acclaimed books like Call Me By Your Name are usually drowned out in a sea of smuts and porns. Don’t fret; to make you believe in love with the genre all over again, here’s a list of touching queer books to delve into this Pride Month.
1. Simon vs The Homo Sapiens Agenda
The titular Simon Spier is one of the most relatable queer main characters in 20-century queer literature. Being a 16-year-old closet teen, Simon has been coming to terms with his sexuality by exchanging emails with the anonymous “Blue” online. However, things turn out badly for Simon as his emails were discovered. Simon must choose between helping his blackmailing classmate, or being outed and losing “Blue” forever.
Despite being a YA novel, Becky Albertalli tailors a very relatable story for even grown-up queers, touching on some of the most primal fear in young closet teens - being outed. The faithful and detailed Jewish cultural aspects described in the book make the book even more believable.
2. Giovanni's Room
Opening with Giovanni being on the guillotine, soon to be executed for murder, the book discusses the life of David, an American man living in Paris, trying to discover himself, as well as his relationship with the titular Giovanni. David’s main struggle comes from society’s expectation of him leading a conventional life: get married and have children, and his scorching desire for men.
Being the first mainstream novel to directly discussed homosexuality and bisexuality, Giovanni’s Room has long been a must-read for all gay men, featured in so many great queer books list. With the theme of discovering one’s sexual identity, gender roles and stereotypes, and alienation, all of which are still valid even today. James Baldwin’s Giovanni’s Room is truly timeless.
3. The Lost Language of Cranes
The Lost Language of Cranes focuses on the Benjamins at the pivotal moment of their life as a family, as well as glimpses at other people in their lives. After falling in love with a man for the first time, the son - Philip Benjamin - has finally come out to his parent as a gay man. Unbeknownst to him, this causes his father to come to terms with his repressed homosexuality as well.
The beauty of The Lost Language of Cranes lies in its portrayal of generational queers. Philips, and by extensions, his queer friends and acquaintances, represent the younger and more progressive gays: outgoing, confident and more open about their sexuality. David Benjamin, however, represents the 1950s queer men: heteronormative, repressed, and struggling to come out.
Book Depot - the place to look for all your queer books
The world of literature is not as censored as film, thus, for gay men, books have long been the medium to find themselves and discover their own sexuality, with many have their own sexual awakening via reading gay novels.
While most people are moving to shop at huge ebook stores for convenience, something about the weight of a book makes your reading experience feel more real. With their huge book reservoir, Book Depot has a myriad of titles for you to choose from. So, shop for your queer-themed book this month for less with a working Book Depot coupon, which can let you claim your book for $2 or less.
