The best queer fantasy graphic novels for young adults

Why am I passionate about this?

When I was a queer teen in the early 2000s, I didn’t have sapphic books or media available to me aside from anime, and even then, the dubbed versions on TV were scrubbed of queerness (I’m looking at you, Sailor Moon and Cardcaptor Sakura). I did have Revolutionary Girl Utena, and it was everything to me: fantasy, ballgowns, and girls dancing together. I wrote my book for that me who craved to see herself in beautiful, fantastical stories, and it’s why I love the fact that we have so many more out there right now that I can recommend to all of you!


I wrote...

The Marble Queen

By Anna Kopp, Gabrielle Kari,

Book cover of The Marble Queen

What is my book about?

My book is a sapphic YA graphic novel with sword fighting, political intrigue, and magic. Princess Amelia needs a marriage alliance for the welfare of her kingdom, and she unknowingly accepts a proposal from a mysterious country, having come not from the prince but his sister, the newly coronated Queen Salira.

Shocked, Amelia tries to make sense of her situation and her confused heart: Salira has awakened strange new feelings inside her, but something dark hides behind the Queen's sorrowful eyes. Amelia must fight the demons of her own anxiety before she can tackle her wife's, all while war looms on the horizon.

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The books I picked & why

Book cover of The Pirate and the Porcelain Girl

Anna Kopp Why did I love this book?

This book has all the things I love about a swashbuckling fantasy–found family, romance, and magic. The art is gorgeous, the characters are loveable, and the world is bustling with excitement and danger at every turn.

I loved the One Piece vibes, and it’s so wonderful to see queerness just be there. I could not stop turning the pages. 

By Emily Riesbeck, NJ Barna (illustrator),

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Pirate and the Porcelain Girl as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 11, 12, 13, and 14.

What is this book about?

Our Flag Means Death gets a magical, sapphic twist in this swashbuckling young adult graphic novel adventure full of high-stakes adventure, fantastical creatures, and a swoony enemies-to-lovers romance perfect for fans of In Deeper Waters and The Prince and the Dressmaker.

“I want to be beautiful. I want to be interesting. I want to be enough.”

That was Ferra Brickminder’s prayer to win back the love of her life. And the gods answer—just not in the way she expected. After hoping for a miracle, Ferra instead watches her skin turn into delicate and dangerously breakable porcelain.

Elsewhere, Brigantine de la…


Book cover of Nimona

Anna Kopp Why did I love this book?

This book was one of the first queer graphic novels I read outside of manga, and it’s still one of my favorites. I love magical monsters and characters forced to make morally grey decisions.

It’s also amazing how science is weaved into magic; I never knew exactly what would happen next. While the movie adaptation is also wonderful, the book will always hold a special place in my heart.

By ND Stevenson,

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked Nimona as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 13, 14, 15, and 16.

What is this book about?

Indies Choice Book of the Year * National Book Award Finalist * New York Times Bestseller * New York Times Notable Book * Kirkus Best Book * School Library Journal Best Book * Publishers Weekly Best Book * NPR Best Book * New York Public Library Best Book * Chicago Public Library Best Book The New York Times bestselling graphic novel sensation from Noelle Stevenson, based on her beloved and critically acclaimed web comic. Kirkus says, "If you're going to read one graphic novel this year, make it this one." Nemeses! Dragons! Science! Symbolism! All these and more await in…


Book cover of The Princess and the Grilled Cheese Sandwich

Anna Kopp Why did I love this book?

This book made me laugh out loud. There were so many cheese puns that my face hurt from my perpetual grin after reading it.

I love having a queer book with lots of heart and low stakes, where I can just relax and enjoy the fun. And the outfits! I need these dresses and suits in my life!

By Deya Muniz,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Princess and the Grilled Cheese Sandwich as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 12, 13, 14, and 15.

What is this book about?

Lady Camembert wants to live life on her own terms, without marriage. Well, without marrying a man, that is. But the law of the land is that women cannot inherit. So when her father passes away, she does the only thing she can: She disguises herself as a man and moves to the capital city of the Kingdom of Fromage to start over as Count Camembert.

But it's hard to keep a low profile when the beautiful Princess Brie, with her fierce activism and great sense of fashion, catches her attention. Camembert can't resist getting to know the princess, but…


Book cover of The Magic Fish

Anna Kopp Why did I love this book?

Fairy-tale retellings are my favorite subgenre, and this book hit every right note for me. I loved the incorporation of stories, known and unknown to me, with art so beautiful there are days I pick this book up just to marvel at it.

The last one brought tears to my eyes, a feat that doesn’t happen often, superseded only by the end of the novel. I cannot recommend it enough.    

By Trung Le Nguyen,

Why should I read it?

7 authors picked The Magic Fish as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Tiến loves his family and his friends…but Tiến has a secret he's been keeping from them, and it might change everything. An amazing YA graphic novel that deals with the complexity of family and how stories can bring us together.

Real life isn't a fairytale.

But Tiến still enjoys reading his favorite stories with his parents from the books he borrows from the local library. It's hard enough trying to communicate with your parents as a kid, but for Tiến, he doesn't even have the right words because his parents are struggling with their English. Is there a Vietnamese word…


Book cover of The Sea in You

Anna Kopp Why did I love this book?

I started reading this book as a webcomic on Tapas almost a decade ago, and I’m so happy to finally have the graphic novel!

I love The Little Mermaid, especially when it’s retold as a sapphic tale, so this is right up my alley. I am in awe of the unique depictions of mermaids in this world, and I can’t wait for the sequel.  

By Jessi Sheron,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Sea in You as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 13, 14, 15, and 16.

What is this book about?

"A refreshingly menacing take on the mermaid mythos." - PUBLISHERS WEEKLY

"An exciting, dramatic, and tender tale of adolescent self-discovery-above and below the ocean." - FOREWORD

15-year-old Corinth was just trying to clean up the beach; she never expected to meet a mermaid, let alone be nearly drowned by one. It was the start of a very strange friendship!

After Skylla, the deadly fanged mermaid, mysteriously lets Corinth live, they grow closer through a cautious exchange of stories, gifts, jokes, and sign language. Mermaids, it turns out, eat people, but however terrifying Skylla may look, she's a little younger, a…


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I Am Taurus

By Stephen Palmer,

Book cover of I Am Taurus

Stephen Palmer

New book alert!

Why am I passionate about this?

Author Philosopher Scholar Liberal Reader Musician

Stephen's 3 favorite reads in 2023

What is my book about?

The constellation we know as Taurus goes all the way back to cave paintings of aurochs at Lascaux. This book traces the story of the bull in the sky, a journey through the history of what has become known as the sacred bull.

Each of the sections is written from the perspective of the mythical Taurus, from the beginning at Lascaux to Mesopotamia, Ancient Egypt, and elsewhere. This is not just a history of the bull but also a view of ourselves through the eyes of the bull, illustrating our pre-literate use of myth, how the advent of writing and the urban revolution changed our view of ourselves, and how even bullfighting in Spain is a variation on the ancient sacrifice of the sacred bull.

I Am Taurus

By Stephen Palmer,

What is this book about?

The constellation we know as Taurus goes all the way back to cave paintings of aurochs at Lascaux. In I Am Taurus, author Stephen Palmer traces the story of the bull in the sky, starting from that point 19,000 years ago - a journey through the history of what has become known as the sacred bull. Each of the eleven sections is written from the perspective of the mythical Taurus, from the beginning at Lascaux to Mesopotamia, Ancient Egypt, Greece, Spain and elsewhere. This is not just a history of the bull but also an attempt to see ourselves through…


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