The Shared Heart: Portraits and Stories Celebrating Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Young People by Adam Mastoon

Attractive black and white photographs of gay, lesbian, and bisexual youth, accompanied by personal statements from each, combine to deliver a bold statement of courage, and will be inspirational to teens exploring their sexuality.

Winner of the Stonewall Book Award for Non-fiction.

***** Highly recommended.

William Morrow & Co., 1997     ISBN  0688149316

Shockproof Sydney Skate by Marijane Meaker

This is an early lesbian novel, particularly coming from a major publishing house (Little, Brown, 1972), and, as the subtitle lets you know, is definitely "A Novel of Our (its) Time." Sydney, just graduated, obsessed with sex, has come home to Manhattan from boarding school, where his mother continues to live her fast-paced life running an ad agency and managing the crises amongst her circle of upper-crust lesbians who she talks about in code, with one of each couple given a male name....more This early lesbian novel from a major publishing house, is definitely "A Novel of Our (its) Time," as the subtitle annnounces. Sydney, just graduated, obsessed with sex, has come home to Manhattan from boarding school, where his mother continues to live her fast-paced life running an ad agency and managing the crises amongst her circle of upper-crust lesbians who she talks about in code, with one of each couple given a male name. 

She somehow thinks that Sydney is innocent of all this, although he has been aware since a young age that his mother and her friends were different. He has played along with her ploy, but this summer, things get dicey when he finds she is pursuing the same young woman that he is.  

Entertaining, dated, particularly in terms of the language, a fun read from a lesbian author of several adult and young adult gay and lesbian titles. Older teens may enjoy this title.

*** Recommended


Little, Brown & Company, 1972   

I've Known Since I Was Eight by Sophie Glasser

Sarah, an eleventh grader, has known that she was a lesbian since she was eight, but this is the year when she finally comes to terms with it. With the support of her bisexual friend Jarod, the only person she feels she can talk to about her feelings, she attends a support group for LGBT teens, and finally manages to come out to the girl she has a crush on, and finally her parents.

Most of her friends are accepting, but Sarah, Jarod, and their dates the prom have to deal with some homop...more Sarah, an eleventh grader, has known that she was a lesbian since she was eight, but this is the year when she finally comes to terms with it. With the support of her bisexual friend Jarod, the only person she feels she can talk to about her feelings, she attends a support group for LGBT teens, and finally manages to come out to the girl she has a crush on, and finally her parents.

Most of her friends are accepting, but Sarah, Jarod, and their dates the prom have to deal with some homophobic violence from other students. Fortunately, their straight friends stand by them, and the teachers are responsive when approached for help.

While there is nothing outstanding about this book, its thin 126 page format is sure to be attractive to reluctant readers.

**  


iUniverse, 2003     ISBN  0595293336

Map of Ireland: A Novel by Stephanie Grant

Set in Boston in the early 70s, this is the story of a city torn apart by racial hatred exasperated by newly introduced school desegregation, and of a white teen struggling with racism, her sexuality, her crush on her Senegalese French teacher, and her sexual initiation with one of the black girls on her basketball team.

Ann wants to think that she can at least be friends with her teammate, if not girlfriends, but an episode of racial violence directed at her French teacher, in which ...more Set in Boston in the early 70s, this is the story of a city torn apart by racial hatred exasperated by newly introduced school desegregation, and of a white teen struggling with racism, her sexuality, her crush on her Senegalese French teacher, and her sexual initiation with one of the black girls on her basketball team.

Ann wants to think that she can at least be friends with her teammate, if not girlfriends, but an episode of racial violence directed at her French teacher, in which she could name the assailants but refuses to do so out of a sense of ethics which prevent her from doing so, causes an irreparable rift between them.

The details of time and place, as well as the ethical and emotional struggles of Ann all ring true. 

**** Recommended


Scribner, 2008     ISBN  1416556222

Twelve Long Months by Brian Malloy

Molly has had a major unrequited crush on her chem lab partner for ages, and when he plans to move to New Jersey to work for his uncle as a house-painter, she is delighted that he will be so close to her in NYC where she will be attending Columbia Univ. However, Mark is non-committal about hanging out, other than to ask if he can occasionally crash in her dorm room if he's in the city too late to catch the last train. Molly soon finds out that Mark is gay and is heartbroken and angry, although Mark had never led her on. Her new girlfriends urge her to be his friend, and she finally comes around. She eventually starts dating another physics major, Simon, only to have Simon fall in love with Mark!

While this is another in the genre of girls bemoaning the fact that the boys they like turn out to be gay, there is better character development, and the strength of the friendship of Molly and her two girlfriends who always make time for each other despite their romantic relationships is a nice change.

*** Recommended


Scholastic, 2008     ISBN  043987761X

My Tiki Girl by Jennifer McMahon

Maggie finds her old friendships and school don't hold much interest anymore after her mother dies in a car accident that she feels she was the cause of. She takes up with new girl and outsider Dahlia, and begins to spend lots of time with her and her wacky (read mentally ill) mother, and cute but disturbed younger brother, to the point of neglecting her schoolwork and ignoring her father. 

Maggie falls in love with Dahlia, and Dahlia seemingly returns her feelings until others find out. Suddenly Dahlia wants nothing more than to fit in with the popular kids, and Maggie is left out in the cold. Meanwhile, Dahlia's family is racing toward implosion, and despite their problems, Maggie tries to be there for her friend. In the critical end, Maggie must call on her father to act as the adult in a situation that has spun way out of Dahlia's or Maggie's control.

An honest book that looks at issues of death, alcohol abuse, alienation, class differences, and mental illness, along with the joys of first love, sexuality, and the importance of family.

**** Recommended 


Dutton, 2008     ISBN  0525479430

Cycler by Lauren McLaughlin

While extremely far-fetched in its premise, this is an interesting look at gender and gender identity, and one of the rare books for teens dealing with bisexual characters.

Every month, for four days, Jill's alter-ego Jack comes to the fore, complete with teenage male body and desires. Jill has learned to block out all memories of these takeover of her body, and until this year Jack has agreed to stay hidden at home. But now he has a crush on her best friend, and even window bars and a keypad lock system on the door can't keep him inside. Meanwhile Jill has a crush of her own, on bisexual Tommy. What happens when both Jack and Jill are on the loose on the same night makes for an interesting conclusion.

The subplot of her parents marital problems is not explored and should have been left out, but otherwise this is an interesting and, at times, funny book.

*** Of interest

Random House, 2008     ISBN  0375851917

Fancy White Trash by Marjetta Geerling

Fifteen-year-old Abby may well have the most embarrassing family ever. Her mother, after having married and divorced her father twice, is now recently married to a too-young guitar-playing hunk who she inherited after he moved on from daughters Kait and then Shelby. Shelby, at twenty-one has a three year old, and is living at home with her. Kait (also living at home) is pregnant, either by the guitar player, or possibly the boy next door. The guitar player is being unfaithful at home (with Shelby) and away. Things can't get worse, can they? Then Abby's father shows up again having been kicked out by his current wife, moves into her room, and reads her journal.

They all fight, they fight loudly, and they are known to fight on the front lawn to the amusement of the neighbors. When the fighting at her house gets out of hand, she escapes next door to her best friend Cody's to spend the night, something she has done for years.

Abby is determined not to follow in her sisters' footsteps when it comes to love. She's got a list of rules: he can't be previously "used" by anyone in her family; she can love him, but needing him is not okay, preferably she won't fall in love until she and her best friend Cody manage to make their escape to New York City, and she's going to college rather than getting pregnant, etc.

Unfortunately, she really has a thing for Cody's older brother Jackson, but there was that week when he was dating Kait, and depending on whether or not you believe that Kait's daughter is a preemie, Jackson could potentially be her father. Abby is so not going there. Despite what she feels. Despite Jackson's sweet notes. She is not going there.

Cody is dreading the start of the school year due to the harassment he gets from the school bullies who have decided he's gay regardless of the fact that Cody is so not going there to the point that he explodes when anyone even discusses gay rights in his presence.

When Abby outs him to himself and another gay student, he is infuriated with her. Fortunately he can't stay angry for long, and they mend their fences. Cody comes out to his parents, and then decides to go back into the closet so he can have his car back.

The homecoming dance brings everything to a head for Cody and Abby and Jackson.

This is a laugh-out-loud funny book despite some of the serious issues and readers will be held in its grip right to the last page.

***** Highly recommended.

Viking, 2008     ISBN  0670010820

Absolute Brightness by James Lecesne

Teens Phoebe and Deirdre are not thrilled to have a cousin they've never heard of come to live with them. They refuse to share a room, and their mother prepares a corner in the musty basement blocked off with cardboard boxes. When Leonard arrives, they are even more dismayed. He swishes, he wears outrageous outfits, he's as queer-seeming as can be. Phoebe tries to warn him to change his ways, but he doesn't get it, replying that he's just being himself.

Where he does make a big diffe...more Teens Phoebe and Deirdre are not thrilled to have a cousin they've never heard of come to live with them. They refuse to share a room, and their mother prepares a corner in the musty basement blocked off with cardboard boxes. When Leonard arrives, they are even more dismayed. He swishes, he wears outrageous outfits, he's as queer-seeming as can be. Phoebe tries to warn him to change his ways, but he doesn't get it, replying that he's just being himself.

Where he does make a big difference is in their mother's hair salon: he convinces his aunt it's time for a new hairstyle, make-up, and clothing, and then he moves on to the other, mostly older clients, offering new, more modern hairstyles, and even convincing some of them to update their wardrobes.

Unfortunately, as Phoebe has predicted, he runs into trouble with other kids, particularly a couple of older bullies, Travis and Curtis.

When he disappears, suspicion falls in a wide arc, including Phoebe's father, and the high school drama coach. The discovery of the real culprit is revealed in a very suspenseful scene, but the book doesn't end there as so many mysteries do.

Instead, many moral and ethical questions are explored by Phoebe in the aftermath, and she finds she has grown up to find her world full of contradictions and ambiguities.

***** Highly Recommended


HarperTeen, 2008    ISBN  0061256277

10,000 Dresses by Marcus Ewert

Every night young Bailey dreams about dresses, one on each step of an endless staircase, each dress more beautiful than the last. But when she tells her mother, and father, and brother about the dresses, and asks for help in making them, they scold her, saying “Dresses aren’t for boys.” Bailey explains that she doesn’t feel like a boy, but they each respond that she is and “that’s that!” Luckily Bailey finds a friend who is also fascinated with dresses and they begin to create some together. 

This is the first book depicting the experience of a child who is transgendered, or at least gender-variant. The experiences of the child, and the initial reactions of family members are accurate and realistic, as is the importance of finding an understanding friend. The illustrations are child-friendly and colorful. The story is simple and appropriate for children as young as three or four, inviting discussion between parent and child. Such books are sorely needed, and this one is a real success.

***** Highly Recommended


Illustrated by Rex Ray. Seven Stories Press, 2008.     ISBN  1583228500