Although Pride Month is drawing to an (official) close, that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t be celebrating Pride every other day of the year!

Representation is important for every person, including our LBGTQIA+ community. So if you are looking to learn or enjoy some books with LGBTQIA+ representation, you’ll love Alphabet Book Club!

They are an online bookstore in Aotearoa - New Zealand, selling books and products with positive LGBTQIA+ representation.

They believe that books are for everyone and all kiwis should be able to see themselves represented in books without paying for excessive shipping, waiting for months, and supporting large international conglomerates!

Their community is made up of book lovers and people from, by and for the rainbow community. With every book purchased, a portion is donated to nonprofit groups that are looking after our Queer, Trans, Intersex and Takatāpui family.

As Book Master, Chelsea (she/they) reads every title they hold in stock so they are able to answer any questions our customers have about appropriateness for gift giving and reading age.

It also means that Alphabet Book Club intimately understand the representation in the books they have in store and so Chelsea always has a good recommendation!

So, here are nine books, recommended by Chelsea, to read this Pride Month.

Here the Whole Time.

Vitor Martins - Achillean/ Contemporary Fiction

This book is beautiful. It deals with some heavy topics (homophobia, body image, anxiety, bullying) but it doesn't get bogged down by these. It never gets too bleak and I think it is because the main character is in therapy so is actively trying to work through his issues.

What I love about this book is that for the main character, Felipe, the negativity he deals with has nothing to do with being gay, it is about his body image. It is refreshing to find books about being queer and dealing with something other than only the trauma of coming out.

You Should See Me in a Crown.

Leah Johnson - Sapphic Rep/ Contemporary Fiction

At its crux this story is about a small-town girl running for prom queen. Who is gay. And black. And impoverished.
Liz is a loveable character. She cares about her family; she has gusto and courage.

The queer love story is tender and sweet. It gives you just enough fluff so that the heavier themes of grief, shame, identity, poverty and loneliness don’t drag the story down too deep for too long. It is a nice look at the intersectionality of being BIPOC and Queer.

They Both Die At The End.

Adam Silvera - Bi Rep/ Sci-fi

What would you do if you received a midnight phone call to tell you that sometime in the next 24 hours you were going to die and nothing you could do would change that fact? How would you spend that time?

This book is a story of a last chance and a last day for two very different people who don’t want to go through that last day alone. This isn't really a book about death, but instead about life. It's about becoming the person you want to be without fear holding you back.

Tim Te Maro and the Subterranean Heartsick Blues.

H.S. Valley - Bi Rep/ Fantasy

When I first started researching queer books all I wanted was a YA book with a Takatāpui main character. I have since told H.S. Valley that I feel like I wished this book into existence. This story is light and fluffy and the writing is beautiful and easy to be swept up in - I read it in one sitting. Fear, uncertainty, giddiness and consent, all wrapped up in love, sass and hormones. Positive Achillean Bi representation! We need more of this!

The House in the Cerulean Sea.

TJ Klune - Achillean Rep/ Fantasy

This story isn't about the main character being gay, he just is, and it's mentioned in the same way that it is described that he has brown hair. And yet the entire story is about being othered by society because of who you were born as. It's the epitome of the found family trope and because of this, the story feels like it hugs you and just holds you for a while. It's gorgeous.

Dreadnought.

April Daniels - TransFemme/ Sci-fi

Kickass trans woman superhero. That should be all the description that you need! It is an interesting premise where superpowers are transferred to a new person when they perish, which is what happens to 15-year-old Danny Tozer.

Along with incredible powers, her body changes to give her the ideal body - the body that matches her real gender. This book truly explores what it means to be brave; it is a superhero story for those that don't normally get to be a part of superhero stories.

I Wish You All The Best.

Mason Deaver - Enby/Contemporary Fiction

This book is about finding yourself at rock bottom and building yourself back up again, piece by piece. Our Enby main character, Ben, gets thrown out of their house after coming out to their parents, and find themselves alone. They reach out to their estranged sister and slowly start the healing process. It is heartfelt, it is vulnerable, it is hopeful and it will save lives.

She Drives Me Crazy.

Kelly Quindlen - Sapphic Rep / RomCom

Sometimes you just want a nice, fluffy, Hollywood love story - this is that book. There are sports gays, there is fake dating, there's only one bed, there's enemies to lovers and the whole town is obsessed with Christmas year round. This book is fun and campy and the perfect weekend read.

The Black Flamingo - Dean Atta -  Queer Rep/ Poetry
This stunning coming-of-age novel is told in powerful, beautiful free verse with accompanied illustrations.

It tells the story of a mixed race boy growing up in London. He explores his gender, sexuality and expression while also battling internalised homophobia and the weight of the society he is surviving in. It is a love letter to the differences in you that make you stand out in a world that wants you to blend in. 

Felix Ever After.

Kacen Callender - TransMasc/Contemporary Fiction

A guy called Felix Love, who has never been in love, but desperately wants to be. This is one of those books that breaks you in order to mend you.

You follow Felix while he navigates his self-discovery, deals with some heart-breaking moments, makes mistakes and then makes amends. It's a beautifully messy, queer trans book about knowing you are worthy of love.

All of these books (and MORE) are available from Alphabet Book Club.