Tuesday, March 2, 2010

Read Alike List: Gay and Lesbian Teen Fiction for the Joliet Public Library

A genere that is currently on the rise is fiction featuring gay and lesbian teens. Some of the books on this list feature the coming out process, while others focus on the politcal and romantic ramifications of being gay.

If You Like:


Hero by Perry Moore


Hardcover: 432 pages













Who has It: Joliet Public Library Main and Joliet Black Road Branch

Call Number: Teen Fiction Moore

Summary: Thom Creed's father was once Major Might, a well known superhero until an accident turned everyone against him. Now even the word hero is banned from the house as Thom and his father try their best to live a normal life.

But Thom has secrets of his own, for one he's gay, and for the second, he has been asked to join the League of Heroes, the same organization that turned against his father. Now Thom has to hide who he is, while at the time trying to discover who is killing off members of the League.

You Might Like: 

Wide Awake by David Levithan
Hardcover: 240 pages

Who has it: Joliet Main Library and Joliet Black Road Branch

Call Number: Teen Fiction Levithan
Summary: A gay Jewish president has just been elected and Duncan Lewis, his boyfriend Jimmy and all their friends are thilled. They believe equality for all is just around the corner until the election results are called into question and Duncan's relationships with Jimmy and his parents are threatened. Now Duncan has to choose, will he fight for what he believes in or sit back and do nothing.



Rainbow Boys by Alex Sanchez

Hardcover: 272 pages

Who has it: Joliet Main Library and Black Road Branch

Call Number: Teen Fiction Sanchez

Summary: Three boys, a sports star who fears he might be gay, a closeted young man in love with his best friend and a flamboyant young man looking for his first love learn the ins, outs in in betweens of love, while fighting fearful parents, bigoted classmates and the threat of AIDS. First in a series.













Ash by Melissa Lo

Hardcover: 272 pages

Who has it: Joliet Main and Black Road Branch

Call Number: Teen Fiction Lo

Summary: Ash longs for a life away from her stepmother and when a fairy prince, cursed to love her, offers her her dreams, Ash must choose between the huntress she loves and a fairy tale come true.  














Tale of Two Summers by Brian Slone

Hardcover: 256 pages

Who has it: Joliet Main and Black Road Branch

Call Number: Teen Fiction Sloan

Summary: Two best friends, one gay one straight, use their private blog to  talk about life, love and learning to drive during summer vacation.















Freak Show by James St. James

Hardcover: 304 pages

Who has it: Joliet Main and Black Road Branch

Call Number: Teen Fiction St. James

Summary: After a brutral attack by his classmates, drag queen Billy Bloom decides the only way to regain his self esteem is to run for homecoming queen, dispite the disapproval of everyone around him.














Running with Scissors by Augusten Burroughs

Hardcover: 352 pages

Who has it: Joliet Main Library

Call Number: 813.6 Bur

Summary: Sent to live with his mother's shrink, Augusten discovers a family willing and able to teach him about life in the most wonderful ways. He also discovers what it means to be gay and Catholic in the modern world.

















Latter Days by T Farbis

Paperback: 224 pages

Who has it: Joliet Black Road Branch

Call Number: Fiction Farbis

Summary: Christian is a playboy ready and willing to make a bet when a group of Mormon missonaries move in next door. But he never dreamed his slow courtship of Aaron would turn into love.
















David Inside Out by Lee F Bantle

Paperback: 224 pages

Who has it: Joliet Main Library



Call Number: Teen Fiction Bantle
 Summary: David just finished coming out to everyone he knows and now the teenager has to face the fallout from that choice as he travels the rough road to true love.

















Outfield Mence by Mark Roder

Paperback 258 pages

Who has it: Des Plains Valley Library-Lockport

Call Number: YA FIC ROE

Summary: Outfield Menace is the tale of Kurt, a fifteen-year-old baseball player, living in a small, 1950s, Indiana town. During a confrontation with Angel, the resident bad boy of Blackford High School, Kurt attacks Angel, earning the wrath of the most dangerous gang in town. When Angel finally corners Kurt, however, something happens that Kurt wouldn’t have imagined in his wildest dreams.














Band Fags by Frank Anthony Pallo
Paperback 352 pages

Who has it: Bettendorf Public Library

Call Number: YA FIC POLI

Summary: Jack Paterno is a straight-A student living in the Detroit suburb of Hazel Park, with his own Atari 5200, a Beta VCR, and everything a seventh-grader could ask for. The only thing he has in common with foul-mouthed Brad Dayton, who lives on the gritty south side near 8 Mile, is that both are in Varsity Band. Or maybe that's not the only thing. Because Jack is discovering that while hanging around with girls in elementary school was perfectly acceptable, having lots of girl friends (as opposed to girlfriends) now is getting him and Brad labeled as Band Fags. And Jack is no fag. Is he?















Thinking Straight by Robin Reardon

Paperback 304 pages

Who has it: Moline Public Library


Call Number: Fic Rea


Summary: If only Taylor Adams had kept on lying to his parents, none of this would have happened. He wouldn't have been shipped off to Straight to God, an institution devoted to "deprogramming" troubled teenagers and ridding them of their vices--whether it's drugs, violence, or in Taylor's case, other boys. Not that Taylor has a problem with being gay, or with reconciling his love for God with his love for his boyfriend Will.
















Out of the Pocket by Bill Konigsberg

Hardcover 272 pages



Who has it: Joliet Main Library


Call Number: TEEN FICTION KONIGSBERG


Summary: Bobby Framingham is one of the top high-school quarterback prospects in California. He’s troubled, though, by his growing realization that he is gay—not easy in the homophobic world of school sports. He confides in his coach, a teacher, and a few friends before he is outed by an unscrupulous reporter for the school newspaper. This sets off a firestorm of national media attention, which Bobby faces bravely.




















The Vast Fields of Ordinary by Nick Burd
Hardcover 309 pages



Who has it: Joliet Main Library





Call Number: Teen Fiction Burd


Summary: It’s Dade’s last summer at home. He has a crappy job at Food World, a boyfriend who won't publicly acknowledge his existence (maybe because Pablo also has a girlfriend), and parents on the verge of a divorce. College is Dade’s shining beacon of possibility, a horizon to keep him from floating away.
















Annie on my Mind by Nancy Garden

Paperback 272 pages

Who has it: Joliet Main Library




Call Number: Teen Fiction Garden




Summary: Liza never knew that falling in love could be so wonderful . . . and so confusing, when she meets her new classmate Annie.






I







n Mike We Trust by P.E. Ryan


Hardcover 336 pages



Who has it: Des Plains Valley Library-Lockport





Call Number: YA FIC RYA



Summary: Fifteen-year-old Garth Rudd, more comfortable with his homosexuality than his 5' 2" stature, is grieving his father's recent death. Forced to get a job, his understandably overprotective mother has asked him to temporarily keep his sexual orientation secret. When his father's estranged twin appears for a summer visit, Garth's trust is easily gained. Secretly Mike helps him navigate the unfamiliar waters of gay relationships by taking him to bookstores and facilitating dates with Adam, a school friend. Before long, Mike exploits Garth's trust and encourages him to quit his job, lie to his mother, and secretly help him collect money for "charities" instead.





ALL IMAGES CAME FROM GOOGLE IMAGES AND ALL SUMMARIES CAME FROM AMAZON.COM