Rainbow Reads for Adults

Recommended books by and about 2SLGBTQQIA+ people.

Updated May 8, 2025
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Winnipeg Public Library Winnipeg Public Library
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Rainbow Reads for Adults

Recommended books by and about 2SLGBTQQIA+ people.

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1

Our wives under the sea
Armfield, Julia
Paper Book
A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR (NPR, The Washington Post, Lit Hub, The Telegraph, Goodreads, Tor.com, them, and more) A FINALIST for the LAMBDA LITERARY AWARD and GOODREADS CHOICE AWARD "A deeply strange and haunting novel in the best possible way...An...
Also available in eBook and eAudiobook formats.

2

Lie with me : a novel
Besson, Philippe
Paper Book
The Advocate's Best Gay Novel of 2019 A New York Times Book Review Editor's Choice O, The Oprah Magazine's Best LGBTQ Books That'll Change the Literary Landscape in 2019 The Wall Street Journal's Ten Books You'll Want to Read this...

Quand j'etais enfant, ma mere ne cessait de me repeter : « Arrete avec tes mensonges. » J'inventais si bien les histoires, parait-il, qu'elle ne savait plus demeler le vrai du faux. J'ai fini par en faire un metier, je suis devenu romancier.. Aujourd'hui, voila que j'obeis enfin a ma mere : je dis la verite. Pour la premiere fois. Dans ce livre.. Autant prevenir d'emblee : pas de reglement de comptes, pas de violence, pas de nevrose familiale.. Mais un amour, quand meme.. Un amour immense et tenu secret.. Qui a fini par me rattraper..

Aussi disponible en formats numeriques.

3

Hijab butch blues : a memoir
H, Lamya
Paper Book
A queer hijabi Muslim immigrant survives her coming-of-age by drawing strength and hope from stories in the Quran in this "raw and relatable memoir that challenges societal norms and expectations" (Linah Mohammad, NPR). "A masterful, must-read contribution to conversations on...
Also available in eBook and eAudiobook formats.

4

Lie with me : a novel
Besson, Philippe
Paper Book
The Advocate's Best Gay Novel of 2019 A New York Times Book Review Editor's Choice O, The Oprah Magazine's Best LGBTQ Books That'll Change the Literary Landscape in 2019 The Wall Street Journal's Ten Books You'll Want to Read this...

Also available in eBook format.

5

Rubyfruit jungle
Brown, Rita Mae.
Paper Book
"The rare work of fiction that has changed real life . . . If you don't yet know Molly Bolt-or Rita Mae Brown, who created her-I urge you to read and thank them both."-Gloria Steinem Winner of the Lambda Literary Pioneer Award | Winner of the Lee Lynch Classic Book Award...

6

A Sweet Sting of Salt: A Novel
Sutherland, Rose
Paper Book
SHORTLISTED FOR THE 2025 KOBO EMERGING WRITER PRIZE When a young woman in 19th century Nova Scotia uncovers a magical secret about her neighbour, she'll have to fight to keep the truth--and the woman she loves--safe in this stunning queer reimagining of the classic folktale The...

Canadian author.

7

Transitions : a mother's journey
Durand, Élodie
Paper Book
When Anne learns that her 19-year-old is a transgender man, she struggles to understand her son's new identity. A new landmark in nonfiction comics, Transitions is a sympathetic, informative, and moving story of a family's journey to acceptance. "I thought I was open...
La vie d'Anne bascule, le jour ou, au cours d'un entretien avec la psychologue du planning familial, elle apprend que sa fille est un garcon. Elle accompagne son enfant dans son changement de genre.

8

The book eaters
Dean, Sunyi
Paper Book
"I devoured this."--V. E. Schwab, New York Times bestselling author of The Invisible Life of Addie La Rue An International Bestseller An NPR Best Sci Fi, Fantasy, & Speculative Fiction Book of 2022 A Book Riot Best Book...
Also available in eBook and eAudiobook formats.

9

Gods of want : stories
Chang, K-Ming
Paper Book
Startling stories center the bodies, memories, myths, and relationships of Asian American women in "a voracious, probing collection, proof of how exhilarating the short story can be" (The New York Times Book Review, Editors' Choice)--from the National Book Award "5 Under 35"...
Also available in eBook format.

10

Transitions : a mother's journey
Durand, Élodie
Paper Book
When Anne learns that her 19-year-old is a transgender man, she struggles to understand her son's new identity. A new landmark in nonfiction comics, Transitions is a sympathetic, informative, and moving story of a family's journey to acceptance. "I thought I was open...

Also available in eBook format.

11

The hairdresser of Harare
Huchu, Tendai
Paper Book
In this delicious and devastating first novel, which The Guardian named one of its ten best contemporary African books, Caine Prize finalist Tendai Huchu (The Maestro, the Magistrate, and the Mathematician) portrays the heart of contemporary Zimbabwean society with humor and grace...

12

The hairdresser of Harare
Huchu, Tendai
Paper Book
In this delicious and devastating first novel, which The Guardian named one of its ten best contemporary African books, Caine Prize finalist Tendai Huchu (The Maestro, the Magistrate, and the Mathematician) portrays the heart of contemporary Zimbabwean society with humor and grace...

Vimbai est la meilleure coiffeuse du Zimbabwe, jusqu'a ce que Dumi arrive. Personne n'a jamais vu un homme coiffer les femmes, mais il s'avere surdoue pour la coiffure. Il s'installe en colocation avec Vimbai qui tombe amoureuse de lui. Dumi cache cependant un lourd secret, il est homosexuel.

13

My government means to kill me
Newson, Rasheed
Paper Book
NATIONAL BESTSELLER · A NEW YORK TIMES NOTABLE BOOK · A NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW EDITOR'S CHOICE · 2023 LAMBDA LITERARY PRIZE FOR GAY FICTION FINALIST The debut novel from television WRITER/PRODUCER OF THE CHI, NARCOS, and...
Also available in eBook format.

14

We have always been here : a queer Muslim memoir
Habib, Samra
Paper Book
Samra Habib has spent most of her life searching for the safety to be herself. The men in her life wanted to police her, the women had only shown her the example of pious obedience, and her body was a problem to be solved. A triumphant memoir of forgiveness and family, both chosen and not, We Have...

Also available in eBook and eAudiobook formats.

Canadian author.

15

Tell me I'm worthless
Rumfitt, Alison
Paper Book
Alison Rumfitt's Tell Me I'm Worthless is a dark, unflinching haunted house story that confronts both supernatural and real-world horrors through the lens of the modern-day trans experience. "Alison is like the twisted daughter of Clive Barker and Shirley Jackson...
Also available in eBook and eAudiobook formats.

16

Love after the end : an anthology of Two-spirit & Indigiqueer speculative fiction
Whitehead, Joshua (Writer)
Paper Book
Lambda Literary Award winner A bold and breathtaking anthology of queer Indigenous speculative fiction, edited by the author of Jonny Appleseed. This exciting and groundbreaking fiction collection showcases a number of new and emerging 2SQ (Two-Spirit and queer)...
Also available in eBook format.

17

Jonny Appleseed : a novel
Whitehead, Joshua (Writer)
Paper Book
2021 CANADA READS WINNER WINNER, Lambda Literary Award; Georges Bugnet Award for Fiction Finalist, Governor General's Literary Award for Fiction; Amazon Canada First Novel Award; Indigenous Voices Award; Carol Shields Winnipeg Book Award; Firecracker Award for...

Also available in eBook and eAudiobook formats.

Canadian author

18

Jonny Appleseed : a novel
Whitehead, Joshua (Writer)
Paper Book
2021 CANADA READS WINNER WINNER, Lambda Literary Award; Georges Bugnet Award for Fiction Finalist, Governor General's Literary Award for Fiction; Amazon Canada First Novel Award; Indigenous Voices Award; Carol Shields Winnipeg Book Award; Firecracker Award for...

Travailleur du cybersexe, Jonny doit rentrer a la reserve dans une semaine pour assister aux funerailles de son beau-pere. Pendant ces sept jours, Jonny se raconte : enfance, amitie, amour, sexe, alcool, maquillage, musique, fantomes, espoirs. Le fil des liens familiaux se retisse avec sa mere, sa kokum, ses tantes et oncles. Surgit tout un monde de tendresse.

Aussi disponible en format numerique.

Auteur canadien.

19

Orlando : a biography
Woolf, Virginia
Paper Book
"Come, come! I'm sick to death of this particular self. I want another." As this centuries-spanning tale begins, Orlando is a passionate sixteen-year-old nobleman whose days are spent in rowdy revelry, filled with the colorful delights of Queen Elizabeth I's court. By the...
Also available in eBook format.

20

The Tensorate series
Yang, Neon
Paper Book
The Tensorate Series, which has been nominated for the Hugo, Nebula, World Fantasy, Locus, and Lambda Literary Awards, is an incomparable treasure of modern epic fantasy. Across four novellas, Neon Yang established themself as a fantasist in bold defiance of the limitations of...

21

Funny boy : the Richard Hunt biography
Stein, Jessica Max
Paper Book
"The most sensational, perpetual teenager in the world." --Jim Henson "To know him was to love him, and we do." --Mark Hamill   Funny Boy: The Richard Hunt Biography tells the life story of a gifted performer whose gleeful irreverence, sharp wit...

22

I'm so (not) over you
Jackson, Kosoko
Paper Book
It's been months since aspiring journalist Kian Andrews has heard from his ex-boyfriend, Hudson Rivers, but an urgent text has them meeting at a cafe. Hudson has a favour to ask - he wants Kian to pretend to be his boyfriend while his parents are in town, and Kian reluctantly agrees. The dinner...

23

Stonewall : the definitive story of the LGBTQ rights uprising that changed America
Duberman, Martin B.
Paper Book
On June 28, 1969, the Stonewall Inn, a gay bar in New York's Greenwich Village, was raided by police. But instead of responding with the routine compliance the NYPD expected, patrons and a growing crowd decided to fight back. The five days of rioting that ensued changed forever the face of gay and...
Also available in eBook format.

24

Gender queer : a memoir
Kobabe, Maia
Paper Book
2020 ALA Alex Award Winner 2020 Stonewall -- Israel Fishman Non-fiction Award Honor Book In 2014, Maia Kobabe, who uses e/em/eir pronouns, thought that a comic of reading statistics would be the last autobiographical comic e would ever write. At the time, it was...

Also available in eBook and eaudiobook format.

25

Gender queer : a memoir
Kobabe, Maia
Paper Book
2020 ALA Alex Award Winner 2020 Stonewall -- Israel Fishman Non-fiction Award Honor Book In 2014, Maia Kobabe, who uses e/em/eir pronouns, thought that a comic of reading statistics would be the last autobiographical comic e would ever write. At the time, it was...

L'auteure relate son parcours, son coming out aupres de ses proches ainsi que le cheminement qui lui a permis de s'identifier comme une personne non binaire et asexuelle.

Aussi disponible en format numerique.

26

High school
Quin, Sara
Paper Book
First loves, first songs, and the drugs and reckless high school exploits that fueled them--meet music icons Tegan and Sara as you've never known them before in this intimate and raw account of their formative years. High School is the revelatory and unique coming-of-age...

Also available in eBook and eAudiobook formats.

Canadian authors.

27

You're that bitch : & other cute lessons about being unapologetically yourself : a gay Cinderella story
Rock, Bretman
Paper Book
"This book is hilarious and that bitch made me laugh out loud."--Chelsea Handler A chaotically joyous collection of essays from one of the original influencers and the internet's sweetheart, Bretman "The Baddest" Rock. Hilarious and earnest, this collection of essays, and never...

Also available in eAudiobook format.

28

I'm so glad we had this time together : a memoir
Vellekoop, Maurice
Paper Book
An astonishing, epic graphic memoir in the spirit of Fun Home by Alison Bechdel and Gender Queer by Maia Kobabe "I'm So Glad We Had This Time Together is that rarest of things- a book about coming out to a loving yet conservative family that is as heartrending to...

Also available in eBook format.

Canadian author.

29

Bury your gays
Tingle, Chuck.
Paper Book
The instant USA Today bestseller by Chuck Tingle about what it takes to succeed in a world that wants you dead. Named one of the Best Horror Books of 2024 (Esquire, Parade, and Library Journal) * Winner of the Locus Award for Best Horror...

Also available in eBook and eAudiobook formats.

30

Woodworking a novel
St. James, Emily.
Paper Book
LONGLISTED FOR THE CENTER FOR FICTION FIRST NOVEL PRIZE SHORTLISTED FOR THE TRANSGENDER FICTION LAMBDA LITERARY AWARD FINALIST FOR THE PUBLISHING TRIANGLE'S EDMUND WHITE AWARD FOR DEBUT FICTION "Writing a funny book is hard. Writing a convincing takedown of one of America...

31

Aunt Tigress
Qin, Emily Yu-Hsuan
Paper Book
From debut author Emily Yu-Xuan Qin comes a snarky urban fantasy novel inspired by Chinese and First Nation mythology and bursting with wit, compelling characters, and LGBTQIA+ representation Readers of Seanan McGuire, Ilona Andrews, and Ben Aaronovitch will devour this gory story...

Canadian author.

32

Vera Bushwack
Burwash, Sig.
Paper Book
A uniquely thrilling and emotive fantasy ride along a sea-bordered highway The wondrous rustic landscape of Nova Scotia bursts from the page in Vera Bushwack, where reality gladly gives way to fantastical flights of fancy before gently coming back down to earth. A...

Canadian author.

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