American Library Association Rainbow Book List

The ALA Rainbow Book List is an annual list of "books with significant gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender content, and which are aimed at youth, birth through age 18" produced by the American Library Association's (ALA's) Rainbow Project, which is run by the ALA's Rainbow Round Table and Social Responsibilities Round Table.[1]

Although roughly 4.5 percent of the U.S. population identifies as LGBT,[2] "the vast majority of libraries lack high-quality, comprehensive LGBT collections" and "satisfaction among LGBT patrons is low."[3] To ensure libraries have adequate LGBT books for readers of all ages, librarians should rely on resources such as the ALA's Rainbow List and the Lambda Literary Foundation.[3]

Honorees

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Top Choices Per Year
Year Category Contributors Title
2011[4] Picture Books Anna Kemp Dogs Don't Do Ballet
Juvenile Fiction Charlotte Agell The Accidental Adventures of India McAllister
Amy Ignatow The Popularity Papers: Research for the Social Improvement and General Betterment of Lydia Goldblatt and Julie Graham-Chang
Geraldine McCaughrean The Death-Defying Pepper Roux
Young Adult/Crossover Fiction Jane Eagland Wildthorn
John Green and David Levithan Will Grayson, Will Grayson
Emily Horner A Love Story Starring My Dead Best Friend
Young Adult/Crossover Nonfiction Sassafras Lowrey Kicked Out
Jeff Sheng Don't Ask. Don't Tell
Various The Gallup's Modern Guide to Gay, Lesbian & Transgender Life (Series, 15 titles)
2012[5] Picture Books Leslea Newman with Mike Dutton (Illus.) Donovan's Big Day
Middle Grade/Early Young Adult Fiction Malinda Lo Huntress
Bil Wright Putting Makeup on the Fat Boy
Young Adult Fiction Cris Beam I Am J
Libba Bray Beauty Queens
Steve Brezenoff Brooklyn Burning
Laura Goode Sister Mischief
Lauren Myracle Shine
Julie Anne Peters She Loves You. She Loves You Not
Patrick Ryan Gemini Bites
2013[6] Middle/Early Young Adult Fiction Kirstin Cronn-Mills Beautiful Music for Ugly Children
Raina Telgemeier Drama
Middle/Early Young Adult Nonfiction Sarah Moon (Ed.) The Letter Q: Queer Writers Notes to Their Younger Selves
Young Adult/Crossover Fiction Lisa Jenn Bigelow Starting From Here
Emily M. Danforth The Miseducation of Cameron Post
A. S. King Ask the Passengers
Malinda Lo Adaptation
Madeline Miller The Song of Achilles
Charles Rice-Gonzalez Chulito: a Novel
Benjamin Alire Saenz Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe
2014[1] Juvenile Fiction Tim Federle Better Nate than Ever
Teen Nonfiction Kate Bornstein My New Gender Workbook: A Step-by-Step Guide to Achieving World Peace Through Gender Anarchy and Sex Positivity
Ken Setterington Branded by the Pink Triangle
Teen Fiction Francesca Lia Block Love in the Time of Global Warming
Kristin Elizabeth Clark Freakboy
Steven Dos Santos The Culling
Z Egloff Leap
Sara Farizan If You Could Be Mine
Alaya Dawn Johnson The Summer Prince
Laura Lam Pantomime
2015[7] Picture Books Jeffrey Bone and Lisa Bone Not Every Princess
Gayle E. Pitman with Kristyna Litten (Illus.) This Day in June
Young Adult Fiction Janet E. Cameron Cinnamon Toast and the End of the World
Sara Farizan Tell Me Again How a Crush Should Feel
Jandy Nelson I'll Give You the Sun
Tess Sharpe Far from You
Andrew Smith Grasshopper Jungle
Julia Watts Secret City
Young Adult Nonfiction Tim Anderson Sweet Tooth
Laurel Golio and Diana Scholl We Are the Youth: Sharing the Stories of LGBT Youth in the United States
2016[8] Graphic Novels Jillian Tamaki SuperMutant Magic Academy
Juvenile Fiction Ami Polonsky Gracefully Grayson
Brian Selznick The Marvels
Juvenile Nonfiction Cory Silverberg with Fiona Smyth (Illus.) Sex is a Funny Word: A Book about Bodies, Feelings, and YOU
Young Adult Fiction Becky Albertalli Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda
Carrie Mesrobian Cut Both Ways
Raziel Reid When Everything Feels Like the Movies
Kate Scelsa Fans of the Impossible Life
Karelia Stetz-Waters Forgive Me If I've Told You This Before
Young Adult Nonfiction Jack Andraka with Matthew Lysiak Breakthrough
2017[9] Graphic Novels Katie O'Neill Princess Princess Ever After
Picture Books Yasmeen Ismail I'm a Girl
Jessica Walton Introducing Teddy: A Gentle Story About Gender and Friendship
Young Adult Fiction Yvonne Cassidy How Many Letters are in Goodbye?
Shaun David Hutchinson We Are the Ants
Seanan McGuire Every Heart a Doorway
Anna-Marie McLemore When the Moon Was Ours
Laura Nowlin This Song Is (Not) for You
Na’amen Gobert Tilahun The Root
Kiersten White And I Darken
2018[10] Board Books Stella Blackstone and Sunny Scribens with Christiane Engel (Illus.) Baby's First Words
Middle Grade Fiction Lisa Bunker Felix Yz
Barbara Dee Star-Crossed
Young Adult Nonfiction Ash Hardell[a] The ABCs of LGBT+
Dashka Slater The 57 Bus
Young Adult Fiction Nina LaCour We Are Okay
Julie Murphy Ramona Blue
Adam Silvera They Both Die at the End
Courtney Stevens Dress Codes for Small Towns
James Tynion IV and Rian Sygh The Backstagers Vol. 1
2019[13] Picture Books Fiction Daniel Haack and Stevie Lewis Prince & Knight
Gayle E. Pitman Sewing the Rainbow
Middle Grade Fiction Kacen Callender Hurricane Child
Young Adult Fiction Ashley Herring Blake Girl Made of Stars
Claire Kann Let's Talk About Love
Adib Khorram Darius the Great s Not Okay
Natasha Ngan Girls of Paper and Fire
Lev A. C. Rosen Jack of Hearts (and Other Parts)
Nic Stone Odd One Out
Hamish Steele DeadEndia: The Watcher's Test
2020[14] Picture Books Nonfiction Rob Sanders and Jamey Christoph Stonewall: A Building. An Uprising. A Revolution.
Picture Books Fiction Kyle Lukoff and Kaylani Juanita When Aidan Became a Brother
Heather Smith and Brooke Kerrigan A Plan for Pops
Young Adult Nonfiction Shaun David Hutchinson Brave Face
Young Adult Fiction Akwaeke Emezi Pet
Sabina Khan The Love & Lies of Rukhsana Ali
Bill Konigsberg The Music of What Happens
Tehlor Kay Mejia We Set the Dark on Fire
Tillie Walden On a Sunbeam
Suzanne Walker and Xu Wendy Mooncakes
2021[15] Early Readers Nonfiction Matthew Burgess and Josh Cochran (Illus.) Drawing on Walls: A Story of Keith Haring
Peter Mercurio and Leo Espinosa (Illus.) Our Subway Baby
Juvenile Fiction DeShanna Neal, Trinity Neal, and Art Twink (Illus.) My Rainbow
Gayle E. Pitman and Violet Tobacco (Illus.) My Maddy
Rachel Simon and Noah Grigni (Illus.) The Every Body Book: LGBTQ+ Inclusive Guide for Kids about Sex, Gender, Bodies, and Families
Middle Grade Fiction Kacen Callender King and the Dragonflies
A. J. Sass Ana on the Edge
Young Adult Nonfiction George Matthew Johnson All Boys Aren't Blue: A Memoir-Manifesto
Young Adult Fiction Betsy Cornwell Circus Rose
Sarah Gailey When We Were Magic
Leah Johnson You Should See Me in a Crown
Lyla Lee I'll Be the One
Darcie Little Badger and Rovina Cai (Illus.) Elatsoe
Tehlor Kay Mejia and Anna-Marie McLemore Miss Meteor
Tochi Onyebuchi War Girls
Lev A. C. Rosen Camp
Aiden Thomas Cemetery Boys
Kat Leyh Snapdragon
Trung Le Nguyen The Magic Fish
Niki Smith The Deep & Dark Blue
2022[16] Picture Books Fiction Tyler Feder Bodies Are Cool
Vanessa Ford and JR Calvin
Harry Woodgate Grandad's Camper
Katherine Locke What Are Your Words: A Book About Pronouns
Juvenile Fiction Jules Machais Both Can Be True
Meg Grehan The Deepest Breath
Gayle Forman Frankie & Bug
Kyle Lukoff Too Bright to See
Middle Grade Fiction Mark Oshiro The Insiders
Chad Lucas Thanks a Lot, Universe
Young Adult Fiction Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé Ace of Spades
Eliot Schrefer The Darkness Outside Us
Mark Oshiro Each of Us a Desert
Adiba Jaigirdar Hani and Ishu's Guide to Fake Dating
Malindo Lo Last Night at the Telegraph
Tracy Deonn Legendborn
Isaac Fitzsimmons The Passing Playbook
Kalynn Bayron This Poison Heart
Graphic Fiction Molly Knox Ostertag The Girl from the Sea
Manga Keito Gaku Boys Run the Riot, vol 1-3
2023[17] Picture Books Fiction Alice B. McGinty and David Roberts (illus.) Bathe the Cat
Nina LaCour and Kaylani Juanita (illus.) Mama and Mommy and Me in the Middle
Picture Books Nonfiction Carole Boston Weatherford, Rob Sanders, and Byron McCray A Song for the Unsung: Bayard Rustin, the Man Behind the 1963 March on Washington
Upper Elementary Fiction Kacen Callender Moonflower
Michael Leali The Civil War of Amos Abernathy
Yoon Lee Tiger Honor
Mark Oshiro You Only Live Once, David Bravo
A.J. Sass Ellen Outside the Lines
Middle School Fiction Kyle Lukoff Different Kinds of Fruit
Middle School Graphic Fiction Olivia Stephens Artie and the Wolf Moon
Young Adult Nonfiction Eliot Schrefer and Jules Zuckerberg (illus.) Queer Ducks (and Other Animals): The Natural World of Animal Sexuality
Young Adult Fiction Jen Ferguson The Summer of Bitter and Sweet
Ryan La Sala The Honeys
Maya MacGregor The Many Half-Lived Lives of Sam Sylvester
Alice Oseman Loveless
Aden Polydoros The City Beautiful
Sol Santana Just Ash
Tucker Shaw When You Call My Name
Aiden Thomas The Sunbearer Trials
Young Adult Novel in Verse Fiction Ashley Woodfolk Nothing Burns as Bright as You
2024[18] Picture Books Fiction Gareth Peter and Izzy Evans (illus.) My Mommies Built a Treehouse
Harry Woodgate Grandad's Pride
Upper Elementary Nonfiction Sarah Prager and Caitlin O'Dwyer (illus.) A Child's Introduction to Pride: The Inspirational History and Culture of LGBTQIA+ Community
Upper Elementary Fiction Leah Johnson Ellie Engle Saves Herself
Nicole Melleby and A.J. Sass Camp QUILTBAG
Maulik Pancholy Nikhil Out Loud
Ronnie Riley Jude Saves the World
Kai Shappley and Lisa Bunker Joy to the World
Esme Symes-Smith Sir Callie and the Champions of Helston
Jake Maia Arlow The Year My Life Went Down the Toilet
Young Adult Fiction James Acker The Long Run
Becky Albertail Imogen, Obviously
Jonny Garza Villa Ander & Santi Were Here: a Novel
Jas Hammonds We Deserve Monuments
Anna-Marie McLemore Self-Made Boys: A Great Gatsby Remix
Lio Min Beating Heart Baby
Gabe Cole Novoa The Wicked Bargain
Trang Thanh Tran She Is a Haunting
Young Adult Graphic Fiction Rey Terciero and Bre Indigo (illus.) Northranger
Young Adult Manga Fiction Uta Isaki Is Love the Answer?

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ Credited as Ashely Mardell; The ABCs of LGBT+ was released before Hardell came out as transgender[11] and married their spouse.[12]

References

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  1. ^ a b "2014 Rainbow Book List". Rainbow Book List. Archived from the original on 2021-05-16. Retrieved 2021-05-07.
  2. ^ Newport, Frank (2018-05-22). "In U.S., Estimate of LGBT Population Rises to 4.5%". Gallup. Archived from the original on 2018-05-22. Retrieved 2021-05-07.
  3. ^ a b Downey, Jennifer (2013). "Self-Censorship in Selection of LGBT Themed Materials". Reference & User Services Quarterly. 53 (2): 104–107. doi:10.5860/rusq.53n2.104. ISSN 1094-9054. Archived from the original on 2021-05-07. Retrieved 2021-05-07 – via JSTOR.
  4. ^ "2011 Rainbow Book List". Rainbow Book List. Archived from the original on 2021-05-12. Retrieved 2021-05-11.
  5. ^ "2012 Rainbow Book List". Rainbow Book List. Archived from the original on 2021-05-08. Retrieved 2021-05-08.
  6. ^ "2013 Rainbow Book List". Rainbow Book List. Archived from the original on 2021-05-12. Retrieved 2021-05-07.
  7. ^ "2015 Rainbow Book List". Rainbow Book List. Archived from the original on 2021-05-07. Retrieved 2021-05-07.
  8. ^ "2016 Rainbow Book List". Rainbow Book List. Archived from the original on 2019-06-24. Retrieved 2021-05-07.
  9. ^ "2017 Rainbow Book List". Rainbow Book List. Archived from the original on 2021-05-07. Retrieved 2021-05-07.
  10. ^ "2018 Rainbow List". Rainbow Book List. Archived from the original on 2021-05-17. Retrieved 2021-05-07.
  11. ^ Ash Hardell (November 14, 2017). "I'm Trans". YouTube. Archived from the original on May 8, 2021. Retrieved May 14, 2021.
  12. ^ Ash Hardell (December 29, 2016). "our low-key wedding". YouTube. Archived from the original on May 10, 2021. Retrieved May 14, 2021.
  13. ^ "The 2019 Rainbow Book List". Rainbow Book List. Archived from the original on 2021-05-07. Retrieved 2021-05-06.
  14. ^ "The 2020 Rainbow Book List". Rainbow Book List. Archived from the original on 2021-05-07. Retrieved 2021-05-05.
  15. ^ "The 2021 Rainbow Book List". Rainbow Book List. Archived from the original on 2021-05-05. Retrieved 2021-05-05.
  16. ^ "The 2022 Rainbow Book List". Rainbow Book List. Retrieved 2024-06-26.
  17. ^ "The 2023 Rainbow Book List". Rainbow Book List. Retrieved 2024-06-26.
  18. ^ "The 2024 Rainbow Book List". Rainbow Book List. Retrieved 2024-06-26.
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