LGBTQ+ Children's Fiction for Gr 3-5Unpublished

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The first LGBTQA+ anthology for middle-graders featuring stories for every letter of the acronym, including realistic, fantasy, and sci-fi stories by authors like Justina Ireland, Marieke Nijkamp, Alex Gino, and more! A boyband fandom becomes a conduit to coming out. A former...

A poignant yet hopeful novel about a girl navigating grief, trauma, and friendship, from Ashley Herring Blake, the award-winning author of Ivy Aberdeen's Letter to the World. Hazel Bly used to live in the perfect house with the perfect family in sunny...

In the wake of a destructive tornado, Ivy Aberdeen develops feelings for another girl in this stunning, tender novel about emerging identity, perfect for fans of The Thing About Jellyfish. When a tornado rips through town, twelve-year-old Ivy Aberdeen's house...

Keats Dalinger is the only boy in a house full of sisters and feels invisible, but things start looking up when the family's new RmannyS (male nanny) enters their lives in this debut novel by a real-life manny.

Prepare to be swept up by this exquisite novel that reminds us that grief and love can open the world in mystical ways.Winner of the Stonewall Book Award!Winner of the Lambda Literary Award!Caroline Murphy is a Hurricane Child.Being born during a hurricane is unlucky, and twelve-year...

From Francesca Cavallo, author of the NY Times best seller Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls. In the city of R., nothing bad ever happens, because the residents maintain the status quo at all costs. But the children of R. have had enough. When a new family--two moms and their...

A touching, humorous story of strong-willed eleven-year-old Liv, who is determined to challenge his school's terrible dress code and change his life. Inspire empathy and compassion (and a few laughs!) in young readers with this stunning middle-grade novel. "My name is Liv (Not Olivia)... I...

Beach loving surfer Alberta has been the only black girl in town for years. Alberta's best friend Laramie is the closest thing she has to a sister, but there are some things even she can't udnerstand. When the Bed and Breakfast next door finally finds new owners, Alberta is ecstatic to learn the...

A Stonewall Book Award Honor * A Sid Fleishman Humor Award Honor Funny and full of heart, this debut graphic novel is a story about friendship, identity, and embracing all the parts of yourself that make you special.   Fifth grade is just not Riley's vibe....

National Book Award winner Kathryn Erskine delivers a contemporary story about a boy with a mystical worldview and a love of science and comets as he faces questions about what makes him special.Some might say Julian is sheltered. But he lives large, and his eternal optimism allows him to see...

"Joyful, occasionally heartbreaking, deeply moving." --R. J. Palacio, bestselling author of Wonder In the debut middle grade novel from #1 New York Times bestselling author Gayle Forman comes a poignant and powerful coming-of-age story that follows a young...

The most important thing to know about Wednesday Wilson is that she's an entrepreneur. She hasn't started any businesses yet, but she's pretty sure today is the day. She and her best friend, Charlie (Wednesday's future Vice President of Operations), with some help from her little brother, Mister,...

Twelve-year-old June Farrell is sure of one thing--she's great at making pies--and she plans to prove it by winning a blue ribbon in the Champlain Valley Fair pie competition. But a backlash against Vermont's civil union law threatens her family's security and their business. Even when faced with...

From the award-winning author of Melissa, a phenomenal novel about queerness past, present, and future. Sam is very in touch with their own queer identity. They're nonbinary, and their best friend, TJ, is nonbinary as well. Sam's family is very cool with it... as long as Sam...

BE WHO YOU ARE. When people look at Melissa, they think they see a boy named George. But she knows she's not a boy. She knows she's a girl. Melissa thinks she'll have to keep this a secret forever. Then her teacher announces that their class play is going to be Charlotte's Web....

From the award-winning author of Melissa, the story of a boy named Rick who needs to explore his own identity apart from his jerk of a best friend. Rick's never questioned much. He's gone along with his best friend Jeff even when Jeff's acted like a bully and a jerk. He's let his...

An accessible and beautifully written middle grade novel-in-verse by award-winning Irish author Meg Grehan about Stevie, a young girl reckoning with anxiety about the many things she has yet to understand--including her feelings about her friend Chloe. Perfect for fans of Ivy Aberdeen's...

A beautifully heartfelt story about one boy's journey toward acceptance. A book that Jill Soloway, the award-winning creator of Transparent, called "a terrific read for all ages" and Ami Polonsky, author of Gracefully Grayson, called "an emotionally complex and achingly real read."<...

A heartening story of two girls who discover their friendship is something more. But how, among their backward town, will Sam and Allie face what they know is true about themselves?Welcome to Daniel Boone Middle School in the 1970s, where teachers and coaches must hide who they are, and girls who...

In this heartfelt and hilarious new novel from Greg Howard, an enterprising boy starts his own junior talent agency and signs a thirteen-year-old aspiring drag queen as his first client. Twelve-year-old Mikey Pruitt--president, founder, and CEO of Anything, Inc.--has always been...

Twelve-year-old Maren is sure theater camp isn't for her. Theater camp is for loud, confident, artsy people: people like her older sister, Hadley-the last person Maren wants to think about-and her cinema-obsessed, nonbinary bunkmate, Theo. But when a prank goes wrong, Maren gets drawn into the...

If home is where the heart is, what would happen if you lost it? Compassion and humor infuse the story of a family caught in financial crisis and a girl struggling to form her own identity. It's the first day of summer and Rachel's thirteenth birthday. She can't wait to head to...

Rick Riordan Presents Yoon Ha Lee's space opera about thirteen-year-old Min, who comes from a long line of fox spirits. But you'd never know it by looking at her. To keep the family safe, Min's mother insists that none of them use any fox-magic, such as Charm or shape-shifting. They must appear...

A bold, timely novel about speaking up and coming out as parents lobby to ban a beloved book from the school curriculum by New York Times-bestselling author David Levithan. When Donovan left his copy of The Adventurers on the kitchen counter, he didn't think his mom...

"Fans of Beverly Cleary's Quimbys, Judy Blume's Hatchers, and, more recently, Jeanne Birdsall's Penderwicks will fervently hope that more Fletcher misadventures are yet to come." --School Library Journal, Starred The start of the school year is not going as the Fletcher...

A Newbery Honor Book . Winner of the Stonewall Book Award . A National Book Award Finalist "A gentle, glowing wonder, full of love and understanding." -The New York Times Book Review It's the summer before middle school and eleven-year-old Bug's best friend...

In this funny and hugely heartfelt novel from the Newbery Honor-winning author of Too Bright to See, a sixth-grader's life is turned upside down when she learns her dad is trans Annabelle Blake fully expects this school year to be the same as every other- same teachers,...

Seven-year old B Browning doesn't know why sometimes he feels like wearing overalls and a flannel shirt and other days wakes up wishing he could dress like his sister Patti-Anne. He knows it bothers and confuses people, even the people who love him, but it feels just right to B. But then, when B and...

* "Belongs alongside Holly Goldberg Sloan's Counting by 7s, Cindy Baldwin's Where the Watermelons Grow, and Ali Benjamin's The Thing about Jellyfish. Highly recommended."--School Library Journal, starred review An emotional and uplifting...

The Tea Dragon Society is the two-time Eisner Award-winning gentle fantasy that follows the story of a blacksmith apprentice, and the people she meets as she becomes entwined in the enchanting world of tea dragons. Winner of the 2018 Eisner Award for...

A Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year * An ALA Rainbow Book List Top 10 Title for Young Readers Three kids who don't belong. A room that shouldn't exist. A year that will change everything. Perfect for fans of Rebecca Stead and Meg Medina, this debut middle grade novel from...

From the illustrator of the web comic Strong Female Protagonist comes a debut middle-grade graphic novel about family, identity, courage -- and magic.In thirteen-year-old Aster's family, all the girls are raised to be witches, while boys grow up to be shapeshifters. Anyone who dares cross...

Newbery Medalist Richard Peck tells a story of small-town life, gay marriage, and everyday heroes in this novel for fans of Gary Schmidt and Jack Gantos. Archer Magill has spent a lively five years of grade school with one eye out in search of grown-up role models. Three of the...

Thirteen-year-old Amy McDougall is worried about Travis, the single gay guy who adopted her when she was a kid. He wants a boyfriend, yet isn't having any luck finding one himself. Amy decides the solution is for someone else to do the finding. Someone like her! Amy's first attempts at...

In 1984 Los Angeles, Alex is a tomboy who would rather wear her hair short and her older brother's hand-me-downs, and Wolf is a troubled kid who's been wearing the same soldier's uniform ever since his mom died. They temporarily set their worries aside when their street is torn up by digging...

Nominated for the 2023 Andre Norton Nebula Award for Middle Grade and Young Adult Fiction A girl's quest to save a forest kingdom is intertwined with her exploration of identity in Every Bird a Prince, a gorgeous middle-grade contemporary fantasy by Jenn Reese, the...

Penny is excited to welcome her new sibling, so throughout her mom's pregnancy she writes letters to it (not it, YOU!). She introduces herself (Penelope, but she prefers "Penny") and their moms (Sammy and Becky). She brags about their home city, Oakland, California (the weather,...

A highly illustrated middle-grade series that celebrates new friendships, first crushes, and getting out of your comfort zone Ever since they can remember, fifth-graders Kenzie (aka Kenzilla) and Shelly (aka Bomb Shell) have dreamed of becoming roller derby superstars. When Austin's city league...

Perfect for fans of Raina Telgemeier, Awkward, and All's Faire in Middle School, this graphic novel follows a neighborhood of kids who transform ordinary cardboard into fantastical homemade costumes as they explore conflicts with friends, family, and their own identity. ...

Fans of Katherine Applegate, Holly Goldberg Sloan, and Lynda Mullaly Hunt will love New York Times bestselling author Amber Smith's heartwarming middle grade debut about family, friendship, and the magic connection between a girl and her dog. Eleven-year-old Sadie's school...

EIGHT STARRED REVIEWS! The reassuring book kids and families need right now. "An absolute original . . . a story that kids will love." --R. J. Palacio, bestselling author of Wonder At a time when everything is changing for Bea and her family, the important things...

A School Library Journal Best Graphic Novel of 2019 A YALSA 2020 Quick Pick for Reluctant Young Adult Readers A YALSA 2020 Great Graphic Novel for Teens Sabrina the Teenage Witch meets Roller Girl in this hilarious, one-of-a-kind...

FINALIST FOR THE GOVERNOR GENERAL'S LITERARY AWARD FINALIST FOR THE OLA SILVER BIRCH AWARD The literary scavenger hunt of a lifetime, starring an endlessly endearing non-binary tween Zed Watson loves a few things: their name (which they chose themself!), their big...

In the woods of a small Kentucky town, Aubrey sets off on a journey about growing up, self-discovery, and acceptance while searching for their missing best friend--perfect for fans of King and the Dragonflies and Three Times Lucky. Aubrey and Joel are...