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I scour the internet for the best queer book lists, interviews, and news so I can share them with you! Here’s what rose to the top this week: Canada Reads contenders talk Two-Spirit books, queer books for fans of Yellowjackets, Hayley Kiyoko discusses her upcoming historical lesbian romance, and more.
Canada Reads Queer Books
Canada Reads is a battle-of-the-books competition that is very popular here in my home country. One of the contenders this year is A Two-Spirit Journey: The Autobiography of a Lesbian Ojibwa-Cree Elder by Ma-Nee Chacaby, represented by Shayla Stonechild. Ma-Nee Chacaby and Shayla Stonechild were interviewed by CBC, and Ma-Nee Chacaby shared how her grandmother recognized that she was Two-Spirit before she had words for it, and how Two-Spirit people used to have a place of respect in her community, before colonization:
“Two-spirit people were highly regarded in those days, they were very special people in our lives in that time of my grandmother’s and even now with me, she said we were special people. There was a reason why the Creator made us that way.”
Speaking of queer Canadian authors, Joshua Whitehead shared recommendations for three books that centre queerness. Whitehead is the author of Jonny Appleseed, which has a Two-Spirit main character. It won Canada Reads in 2021. About the books he chose, he says,
“I think a question I’ve asked myself continually over and over is: Is all literature a form of grieving? Really specifically, as a queer person who is Indigenous, we always have these tragic endings or trauma. And these books don’t shy away from the fact all three deal with loss, with death with suicide, with mental health.
But they do so in ways that really take these things that we deem are unhealthy or painful — and then they also flip them, they transform them or mutate them in such a way that we can also see beauty and joy in remembrance. We can see dread and fear and anxiety. But when they’re inverted, we also see their antithesis, such as awe and assurance and presence.”
It’s Never a Bad Time to Read Queer Horror
Sure, we’re counting down the days until spring in the Northern Hemisphere, but horror isn’t confined to October. It’s always a good time to read queer horror. Autostraddle put together a list of Queer Books To Read if You Love Yellowjackets, including books about wilderness survival, trauma, rage, yearning, obsession, dual timelines, toxic female friendships, and—of course—cannibalism.
Also, the Queer Books Database put together a list of their favourite Black Queer Horror Titles, including YA and adult titles. Personally, I’d add Model Home by Rivers Solomon, which is an extremely unsettling read where the haunting is all too real. That’s my first Rivers Solomon book, but I imagine any of their others would also be a good addition. I also have to second I Feed Her to the Beast and the Beast Is Me by Jamison Shea, which is a YA horror book about a bisexual Black ballerina who makes a deal with a river of blood. I loved reading about Laure because she’s unapologetically angry and ambitious. I can’t wait to read book two of this duology.
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Hayley Kiyoko is Writing for the Tumblr Lesbians
In case you missed it, singer Hayley Kiyoko—known to her fans as Lesbian Jesus—is following up her YA debut, Girls Like Girls, with a lesbian YA historical romance Where There’s Room For Us. It comes out on November 4th. Hayley Kiyoko describes it as a “queer hyper-reality set in the Victorian era. Imagine Pride and Prejudice meets Little Women and it’s inspired by my meet-cute with my girlfriend, Becca, of course. Our meet-cute was really interesting because Becca was actually trying to hook me up with her younger sister, and her younger sister bailed and so she went instead.”
She goes on to say, “This is for the fans, honestly, for queer representation with the current political climate. We need acts of joy, we need escapism, we need support, and we’re going to really be relying on artists and creatives to keep us afloat.”
Hayley Kiyoko also shared that she’s reading your Girls Like Girls fanfiction, so be aware of that, and she added “This is for the Tumblr lesbians.”
…And More Queer Book Lists
I can’t just leave you with links, though: here are a couple more queer book lists to grow your TBR. First off, these queer and cozy reads will keep you warm in the last gasps of winter. This is a subgenre I adore, so I hope the trend continues and we get plenty more queer cozy fantasy books!
