The best books about gay teenagers

Laika was the Moscow street dog destined to become Earth's first space traveler. This graphic novel follows her journey. Nick Abadzis masterfully blends fact and fiction in the intertwined stories of three compelling lives. Along with Laika, there is Sergei Korolev, once a political prisoner, now a driven engineer at the top of the Soviet Union's space program, and Yelena Dubrovsky, the lab technician responsible for Laika's health and wellbeing. Abadzis gives life to a pivotal event in modern times, illuminating the hidden moments, both human and canine, that lie behind the written word of history.

"A glorious ode to the beauty of pre-teen friendship…. By far my favorite middle-grade novel of 2021!" -- Nic Stone, New York Times bestselling author of Clean Getaway

When You Get the Chance is a YA novel that explores friendship, family, and queer community through the eyes of two teens. Living on opposite coasts, Mark and Talia haven’t seen each other in years. When their grandfather dies unexpectedly, they find themselves reunited at the cottage, cleaning it out while the family decides what to do with it. The cousins are both queer, but they soon realize that’s about all they have in common—well, that and the fact that they’d both prefer to be in Toronto for Pride Weekend. Talia is desperate to see her high school sweetheart Erin. Mark is just looking for some fun.

So, with Mark’s little sister Paige in tow, they decide to hit the road. With a bit of luck and some help from a series of unexpected new friends, they might just make it to the big city and find what they’re looking for. That is if they can figure out how to start seeing things through each other’s eyes.

When You Get the Chance is a YA novel that explores friendship, family, and queer community through the eyes of two teens. Living on opposite coasts, Mark and Talia haven’t seen each other in years. When their grandfather dies unexpectedly, they find themselves reunited at the cottage, cleaning it out while the family decides what to do with it. The cousins are both queer, but they soon realize that’s about all they have in common—well, that and the fact that they’d both prefer to be in Toronto for Pride Weekend. Talia is desperate to see her high school sweetheart Erin. Mark is just looking for some fun.

So, with Mark’s little sister Paige in tow, they decide to hit the road. With a bit of luck and some help from a series of unexpected new friends, they might just make it to the big city and find what they’re looking for. That is if they can figure out how to start seeing things through each other’s eyes.

“When the Stars Lead to You is a story about a girl with big dreams, and a boy who disappears.”

When Ashton broke Devon’s heart at the end of a magical summer, she thought she’d never heal. But over the following year, Devon managed to put the pieces back together for the sake of her dream to become an astrophysicist. Now it’s senior year, and she’s determined to enjoy it as she prepares for a future of studying the galaxies. Until Ashton shows up on the first day of school. Their chemistry is undeniable, but as the spark in his eyes grows dimmer, Devon wonders if he's the same person she fell in love with that summer. Will her feelings for him eclipse her love of the stars?

I wrote this book so that children like mine can feel amazing being exactly who they are. It’s about Danny, who wants to be a princess in the school parade. Danny and mom venture out to find the perfect purple princess dress. They find lots of purple things, but will they find the right dress in time? The story is based on a multiracial intergenerational family and is bilingual in Spanish and English. 

When Cordy Wheaton’s father falls ill, the sixteen-year-old philosophy expert vows to reunite his family. He embarks on a modern-day odyssey with forty bucks in his pocket and a dream to find his missing brother, Travis, and convince him to be Travis again—by taking him to a show at Birdland Jazz Club in New York City and reminding him of the common bonds they share with their legendary hero, John Coltrane. Cordy’s journey is soon haunted by ghostly visions, traumatic dreams, and disembodied voices that echo through his mind. He starts to wonder if the voices are those of the fates, guiding him toward his destiny—or if he’s losing his grip on reality.

Fire on the Island is a playful, romantic thriller set in contemporary Greece, with a gay Greek-American FBI agent, who is undercover on the island to investigate a series of mysterious fires. Set against the very real refugee crisis on the beautiful, sun-drenched Greek islands, this novel paints a loving portrait of a community in crisis. As the island residents grapple with declining tourism, poverty, refugees, family feuds, and a perilously damaged church, an arsonist invades their midst. Having all the charm of Zorba the Greek, it sheds a bright light on the very real challenges of life in contemporary Greece. For lovers of crime fiction and the allure of the Greek islands, Fire on the Island is the perfect summer read.

Luca is ready to audition for the Australian Ballet School. All it takes to crush his dreams is one missed step... and a broken foot. Jordan is the gorgeous rowing star and school captain of Luca's new school. Everyone says he's straight - but Luca’s not so sure...

As their unlikely bond grows stronger, Luca starts to wonder: who is he without ballet? And is he setting himself up for another heartbreak?