Reading With Pride - Young Adult, Transgender Character

Need a hand finding pukapuka for the Reading With Pride challenge? Look no further!

This is a list of books that will help you complete the first section of the challenge - reading a book with a transgender character.

This is the Young Adult list.

Updated May 11, 2026
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Hazelthorn
Drews, C. G.
Paper Book
AN INSTANT #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER! CG Drews, instant New York Times-bestselling author of Don't Let the Forest In, returns with another deeply unsettling and yet hauntingly beautiful tale of murder and botanical body horror, perfect for fans of Andrew...
Pet
Emezi, Akwaeke
Paper Book
NATIONAL BOOK AWARD FINALIST * STONEWALL BOOK AWARD WINNER * ONE OF TIME MAGAZINE'S 100 BEST YA BOOKS OF ALL TIME NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR by The New York Times * Time * Buzzfeed * NPR * New York Public Library * Publishers Weekly * School...
Those Pink Mountain nights
Ferguson, Jenny
Paper Book
In her remarkable second novel following her Governor General's Award-winning debut, The Summer of Bitter and Sweet, Jen Ferguson writes about the hurt of a life stuck in past tense, the hum of connections that cannot be severed, and one week in a small, snowy town that changes everything. <...
Canto contigo : a novel
Garza Villa, Jonny
Paper Book
STONEWALL BOOK AWARDS - MIKE MORGAN & LARRY ROMANS YOUNG ADULT LITERATURE AWARD WINNER THE PUBLISHING TRIANGLE AWARDS - JACQUELINE WOODSON AWARD FOR LGBTQ+ CHILDREN'S/YOUNG ADULT LITERATURE WINNER When a Mariachi star transfers schools, he...
These violent delights
Gong, Chloe
Paper Book
An Instant New York Times Bestseller! A BuzzFeed Best Young Adult Book of 2020 Perfect for fans of The Last Magician and Serpent & Dove, this heart-stopping debut is an imaginative Romeo and Juliet retelling set in 1920s Shanghai...
When the angels left the old country
Lamb, Sacha
Paper Book
For fans of Good Omens -- a queer immigrant fairytale about individual purpose, the fluid nature of identity, and the power of love to change and endure. Uriel the angel and Little Ash (short for Ashmedai) are the only two supernatural creatures in their...
Meet cute diary
Lee, Emery
Paper Book
Felix Ever After meets Becky Albertalli in this swoon-worthy, heartfelt rom-com about how a transgender teen's first love challenges his ideas about perfect relationships. * A 2022 ALA Rainbow Booklist Selection * A Junior Library Guild Selection * Noah Ramirez thinks he's an expert...
The many half-lived lives of Sam Sylvester
MacGregor, Maya
Ebook
An Andre Norton Nebula Award for Middle Grade and Young Adult Fiction Nominee "Look no further for your next favorite read, because The Many Half-Lived Lives of Sam Sylvester has it all: a gripping murder mystery that will keep you turning pages, ghosts, romance, and a...
Beating heart baby
Min, Lio
Audiobook
All out
Mitchell, Saundra
Ebook
Take a journey through time and genres to discover stories where queer teens live, love, and shape the world around them. Seventeen young adult authors across the queer spectrum have come together to create a collection of beautifully written diverse historical fiction for...
The deep dark
Ostertag, Molly Knox
Paper Book
From Molly Knox Ostertag, writer-illustrator of the New York Times and ABA Indie bestselling The Witch Boy trilogy and The Girl from the Sea, comes a darkly beautiful story of identity, family, love, loss, and magic. Everyone has secrets. Mags's has teeth. Magdalena...
Homebody
Parish, Theo
Paper Book
YALSA Excellence in Nonfiction Award Finalist In their comics debut, Theo Parish masterfully weaves an intimate and defiantly hopeful memoir about the journey one nonbinary person takes to find a home within themself. Combining traditional comics with organic journal-like interludes, Theo...
If I was your girl
Russo, Meredith
Paper Book
Meredith Russo's award-winning, big-hearted novel If I Was Your Girl is about being seen for who you really are, with a love story you can't help but root for! Amanda Hardy is the new girl in school. Like anyone else, all she wants is to make friends and fit in. But...
Nimona
Stevenson, ND
Paper Book
Nimona is an impulsive young shapeshifter with a knack for villainy. Lord Ballister Blackheart is a villain with a vendetta. As sidekick and supervillain, Nimona and Lord Blackheart are about to wreak some serious havoc. Their mission: prove to the kingdom that Sir...
Celestial monsters
Thomas, Aiden
Paper Book
A New York Times-Bestseller! A Kids' Indie Next Pick! A B&N Best YA Book of the Year! New York Times-bestselling author Aiden Thomas returns to the beloved world of The Sunbearer Trials in Celestial Monsters, a heart-stopping duology...
Cemetery boys
Thomas, Aiden
Paper Book
Longlisted for the National Book Award for Young People's Literature! A New York Times Bestseller! A YALSA Best Fiction for Young Adults Top Ten pick! "Goundbreaking." -Entertainment Weekly A trans boy determined to prove his gender to...
The Sunbearer Trials
Thomas, Aiden
Paper Book
A New York Times-Bestseller! Welcome to The Sunbearer Trials, where teen semidioses compete in a series of challenges with the highest of stakes, in this electric new Mexican-inspired fantasy from Aiden Thomas, the New York Times bestselling author of...
The mermaid, the witch, and the sea
Tokuda-Hall, Maggie
Paper Book
In a world divided by colonialism and threaded with magic, a desperate orphan turned pirate and a rebellious imperial lady find a connection on the high seas. The pirate Florian, born Flora, has always done whatever it takes to survive--including sailing under false flag on the...
Compound fracture
White, Andrew Joseph
Paper Book
A Michael L. Printz Honor Book A queer Appalachian thriller that pulls no punches--following a trans autistic teen who's drawn into the generational struggle between the rural poor and those who exploit them. The INSTANT New York Times, USA Today, and Indie...
Hell followed with us
White, Andrew Joseph
Paper Book
INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER A furious, queer debut novel about embracing the monster within and unleashing its power against your oppressors. "A long, sustained scream to the various strains of anti-transgender legislation multiplying around the world...
The spirit bares its teeth
White, Andrew Joseph
Paper Book
INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER! A Stonewall Honor Book in Young Adult Literature! A blood-soaked and nauseating triumph that cuts like a scalpel and reads like your darkest nightmare. New York Times bestselling author Andrew Joseph White...

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