LGBTQ+ Youth & Adult Resources: Librarians and Educators
Books, groups, healthcare, movies, and more for those who are Queer/Questioning, Undecided, Intersex, Lesbian, Transgender/Two-Spirit, Bisexual, Asexual, Gay/Genderqueer and their allies.
LGBTQ+ Books for Educators
Need More Books and Resources?
The following websites are great for LGBTQ-specific reader's advisory!
- The American Library Association's Rainbow Book Lists (kids/teens)
- The American Library Association's Over the Rainbow Book Lists (adults)
- Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Round Table
- Lambda Literary Foundation Reviews
- The Publishing Triangle: The 100 Best Lesbian and Gay Novels
Educators may find the following resources useful:
Books
Educators
"Don't Be So Gay!" by ISBN: 9780774823265Publication Date: 2013-03-04Drawing on interviews with queer youth and their allies in the Toronto area, the author considers the effectiveness of safe school legislation and concludes that the current legislation is often more responsive than proactive. Exploring how students' own experiences, ideas, and definitions of safety might be translated into policy reform, this book offers a fresh perspective on a hotly debated issue.
Coming Out of the Classroom Closet by ISBN: 9781560242161Publication Date: 1992-04-13This landmark book empowers educators to become visible, positive influences and role models for gay and lesbian students in their classrooms and schools. As most homosexual educators, and even students, remain invisible due to possible hostilities of coming out, this eye-opening book presents recent research to help gay and lesbian teachers break their silence. It encourages them to speak out and promotes the development of school-based intervention for gay, lesbian, and bisexual students. The timely research presented in Coming Out of the Classroom Closet will hearten gay and lesbian educators to continue to strive for fair treatment as peers and for equal representation in educational materials.
Dude, You're a Fag by ISBN: 9780520248625Publication Date: 2007-06-04Explores topics of sexuality and gender at a racially diverse high school, examining the institutionalization of heterosexuality, adolescent male homophobia, dominance, and the use of derogatory terms as disciplinary mechanisms for regulating other boys and intimidating both boys and girls.
Gay, Lesbian, and Transgender Issues in Education by ISBN: 9781560235248Publication Date: 2005-05-11Presents gay, lesbian and transgender youth issues through the words of the adolescents themselves, along with clear up-to-date essays about LGBT youth programs, policies, and practices around the world.Making Schools Safe for Gay and Lesbian Youth: Breaking the Silence in Schools and in Families - Education Report
Publication Date: 1993-02-25Addresses problems faced by gay and lesbian adolescents in schools; presents excerpts of testimony given by gay and lesbian teenagers as compelling evidence for the need for change in schools; problems discussed include harassment of gays, isolation and suicide, poor school performance and dropping out of school, lack of adult role models and unmet needs of families; makes recommendations for protecting gay teens from discrimination, harassment and violence; gives results of a survey of high school student's attitude about gay, lesbian and bisexual issues...
No Sanctuary by ISBN: 9781512603149Publication Date: 2018-09-13No Sanctuary tells the inspiring story of a mostly unseen rescue attempt by a small group of teachers who led the push to make schools safer for these at-risk students. Their efforts became the blueprint for Massachusetts's education policy and a nationwide movement, resulting in one of the most successful and far-reaching school reform efforts in recent times.
Queer Bodies by ISBN: 9781433111624Publication Date: 2010-11-22Using psychoanalytic, feminist, and queer theories, the book calls for critical educators to work toward ethical encounters with queer bodies - whether lesbian, gay, transgender, or overweight - in order to address discrimination in the form of homophobia, transphobia, and fatphobia in schools, physical education, and sport settings.
The Right to Be Out by ISBN: 9780816674589Publication Date: 2010-09-09"The Right to Be Out" begins with a cogent history and analysis of the dramatic legal developments concerning the rights of LGBT persons since 1968. Stuart Biegel then turns to what K-12 schools should do -and in many cases have already done- to implement right-to-be-out policies. He examines recent legal and public policy changes that affect LGBT students and educators in the K-12 public school system.
School's Out by ISBN: 9780520278233Publication Date: 2014-11-14How do gay and lesbian teachers negotiate their professional and sexual identities at work, given that these identities are constructed as mutually exclusive, even as mutually opposed? Catherine Connell's examination of the tension between the rhetoric of gay pride and the professional ethic of discretion insightfully connects and considers complicating factors, from local law and politics to gender privilege. She describes how racialized discourses of homophobia thwart challenges to sexual injustices in schools.
Librarians
The Heart Has Its Reasons by ISBN: 9780810850712Publication Date: 2006-03-30Cart and Jenkins chart the evolution of the field of YA literature having LGBTQ content. They identify titles that are remarkable either for their excellence or failures, noting the stereotypical, wrongheaded, and outdated books as well as the accurate, thoughtful, and tactful titles. Useful criteria for evaluating books with LGBTQ content are provided.
LGBTQAI+ Books for Children and Teens by ISBN: 9780838916490Publication Date: 2018-05-31This resource for librarians who work with children and teens not only surveys the best in LGBTQAI+ lit but, just as importantly, offers guidance on how to share it in ways that encourage understanding and acceptance among parents, school administrators, and the wider community. Helping to fill a gap in serving this population, this guide discusses the path to marriage equality, how LGBTQAI+ terms have changed, and reasons to share LGBTQAI+ literature with all children; presents annotated entries for a cross-section of the best LGBTQAI+ lit and nonfiction for young children, middle year students, and teens, with discussion questions and tips; offers advice on sensitive issues such as starting conversations with young people, outreach to stakeholders, and dealing with objections and censorship head on; and ideas for programming and marketing.
Nepantla by ISBN: 9781937658786Publication Date: 2018-05-01In 2014, Christopher Soto and Lambda Literary Foundation founded the online journal Nepantla, with the mission to nurture, celebrate, and preserve diversity within the queer poetry community, including contributions as diverse in style and form, as the experiences of QTPOC in the United States. Now, Nepantla will appear for the first time in print as a survey of poetry by queer poets of color throughout U.S. history, including literary legends such as Audre Lorde, James Baldwin, June Jordan, Ai, and Pat Parker alongside contemporaries such as Natalie Diaz, Ocean Vuong, Danez Smith, Joshua Jennifer Espinoza, Robin Coste Lewis, Joy Harjo, Richard Blanco, Erika L. Sánchez, Jericho Brown and many more.
Representing the Rainbow in Young Adult Literature by ISBN: 9781442278066Publication Date: 2018-03-20Discussions of gender and sexuality have become part of mainstream conversations and are being reflected in the work of more and more writers of fiction, particularly in literature aimed at young adult audiences. But young readers, regardless of their sexual orientation, don't always know what books offer well-rounded portrayals of queer characters and situations. In Representing the Rainbow in Young Adult Literature: LGBTQ+ Content since 1969, Christine Jenkins and Michael Cart provide an overview of the literary landscape.
Top 250 LGBTQ Books for Teens by ISBN: 9781937589561Publication Date: 2015-03-02A summary of the 250 best books for LGBTQ teens, written by experts on the subject and addressed to teen book buyers. Identifying titles that address the sensitive and important topics of coming out, being out, and the search for community, this catalog spotlights the best gay, lesbian, bi, transgender, and questioning books written for teens. The authors cover fiction of all kinds, as well as graphic novels and general nonfiction aimed at readers in middle school and high school, and include recent publications as well as classics that continue to be read and enjoyed by 21st-century teens. Information on how to find library programs, services, and additional resources for LGBTQ teens is also provided, making this a one-stop sourcebook for LGBTQ teens, their families, friends, and classmates, as well as teachers and librarians.
