Pride Week Roundup

It's Pride Week here in Boston--so show your pride, and read a few of these awesome books!

Annie On My Mind by Nancy Garden
This book is the classic lesbian YA novel--the first to have a positive ending, and still one of the best out there. From the moment they first meet, Liza knows Annie is special. Their friendship grows into a tender romance, but the pressures of their families, their school, and the society around them threaten to drive the girls apart. Luckily for them, love is stronger than any adversity.

Uncle Bobby's Wedding by Sarah S. Brannen
Chloe's Uncle Bobby is her favorite uncle of all, but when she hears that he's getting married, she worries that now she'll have to share him, and she won't be the most special person in his life anymore. After a while, though, Chloe realizes that Jamie is fun, too, and she's looking forward to having him as an uncle. When Bobby and Jamie ask her to be the flower girl at their wedding, Chloe is sure that she's still just as special to her Uncle Bobby--and now to Uncle Jamie, too.

David Inside Out by Lee Bantle
David's track team practices become tense and troublesome when he develops a crush on Sean, a fellow runner. He tries everything he can think of to deny his growing feelings, but in the end David must discover how to be honestly himself. A brand-new teen read!

In Our Mothers' House by Patricia Polacco
This tender story of two mothers and their adopted family follows their adventures from raising their three children and dealing with occasional neighborhood prejudice to seeing the children wed and growing old together. You'd be hard pressed to find a more joyful expression of alternative family life than this great picturebook.

My Most Excellent Year by Steve Kluger
TC is obsessed with the Red Sox and new girl Alejandra; his brother-in-spirit Augie is crazy about musicals and Andy the football jock. Together, they'll make their freshman year a wild ride of love and rule-bending. Told through journal entries and im's, this beautiful middle-grade/teen book will play your heartstrings like a fiddle.

King & King by Linda de Haan and Stern Nijland
When the Queen decides it's time for her son to marry, she calls in all the princesses in the land--even though the Prince doesn't care much for any of them. Finally, Princess Madeleine arrives...with her brother, Prince Lee. It's love at first sight for the two princes, who marry at once, and rule the land as King and King in this hilarious picturebook.

Skim by Mariko and Jillian Tamaki
At a girls' academy in Toronto, Kimberly Keiko Cameron (aka Skim) is overweight, a wannabe Wiccan, and possibly gay--she's just not sure yet. When classmate Katie's boyfriend kills himself and Skim's teacher crush Ms. Archer abruptly leaves the school, the two girls cleave to each other as they try to navigate the troubled waters of high school. A pick for the NY Times' Best Illustrated list for 2008, this graphic novel is a great pick for comic fans.

Someday This Pain Will Be Useful to You by Peter Cameron
James is smart, sensitive, articulate...and has no idea how to navigate an adult world whose expectations he has no desire to meet. Instead of going to college in the fall, he'd much rather move to an old house in a small Midwestern town. He despises his pretentious sister, baffles his therapist, and concocts an alternate online personality in order to pursue his crush on a coworker--but nothing turns out the way he expected.

And Tango Makes Three by Justin Richardson
This sweet picturebook, inspired by true events at the Central Park Zoo in New York, tells the tale of two male penguins, Roy and Silo, who do everything together--even build a nest, and attempt to hatch a rock. When a zookeeper finds an abandoned egg that needs tending, he entrusts it to Roy and Silo. When the chick finally hatches, the zookeepers name her Tango--because it takes two to make a Tango, and three of them to make a family.

From the Notebooks of Melanin Sun by Jacqueline Woodson
Fourteen-year-old Melanin Sun has a pretty comfortable life, until his mother reveals that she's fallen in love with a woman. The news throws his quiet existence into turmoil, forcing him to choose between his mother and his friends--and he's about to learn the truth about prejudice, sacrifice, and love, whether he wants to or not.

Mommy, Mama and Me by Leslea Newman, illustrated by Carol Thompson
Daddy, Papa and Me by Leslea Newman, illustrated by Carol Thompson
Coming soon--two board books that are so new, they haven't even arrived yet! With rhythmic text and sweet illustrations, these books show toddlers spending the day with their lesbian or gay parents. They're a great example of alternative families doing just what every other parent does--loving their children.