The Diverse Families bookshelf was created and funded through numerous grants. Due to lack of additional grants and the loss of key personnel, the project has come to an end. We have tremendously enjoyed creating this database and hope that it can help bring readers and books together.
Browse by LGBTQ:
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If I Told You So
Timothy Woodward
Sean Jackson is sixteen and his choice is either to take a landscaping job in Georgia with his father, or to stay in his small New Hampshire hometown and take a job at the local ice cream shop. He stays home and deals with the pressures of a young man who struggles with trying to tell his father that he is gay.
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If I Was Your Girl
Meredith Russo
Amanda Hardy only wants to fit in at her new school, but she is keeping a big secret, so when she falls for Grant, guarded Amanda finds herself yearning to share with him everything about herself, including her previous life as Andrew.
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If Only
Jennifer Gilmore
At sixteen Bridget is pregnant--and her boyfriend has dumped her for another girl. She's trying to envision a future for her baby. But as she sifts through the many paths and the many people who want to parent her child, she can't help but feel that there is no right decision. Fifteen years later: Ivy knows that she is now the same age Bridget was when she placed Ivy for adoption. She knows that Bridget was the one who named her. When Ivy goes in search of Bridget--of her own history--will the risks outweigh the benefits of knowing where she comes from and why her birth mother chose to walk away?
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If You Could be Mine: A Novel
Sara Farizan
In Iran, where homosexuality is punishable by death, seventeen-year-olds Sahar and Nasrin love each other in secret until Nasrin's parents announce their daughter's arranged marriage and Sahar proposes a drastic solution.
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I Have Lost My Way
Gayle Forman
A fateful accident draws three strangers together over the course of a single day: Freya who has lost her voice while recording her debut album. Harun who is making plans to run away from everyone he has ever loved. Nathaniel who has just arrived in New York City with a backpack, a desperate plan, and nothing left to lose. As the day progresses, their secrets start to unravel and they begin to understand that the way out of their own loss might just lie in helping the others out of theirs.
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Ilario: The Lion's Eye
Mary Gentle
Abandoned and alone, the fosterling Ilario grows up as the King's Freak, surrounded by all the pomp, intrigue, and danger of the Iberian court. Fleeing a failed treacherous attack, Ilario crosses the sea to Carthage, where the mysterious Penitence shrouds the sky in darkness. There, a strange and awful destiny awaits the would-be painter, one that spans continents and kingdoms.
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I’ll Give You the Sun
Jandy Nelson
A story of first love, family, loss, and betrayal told from different points in time, and in separate voices, by artists Jude and her twin brother Noah.
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I Love My Purse
Belle Demont
Charlie loves the bright red purse that his grandmother let him have. One day, he decides to take it to school. First his father, then his friends, and even the crossing guard question him about his "strange" choice. After all, boys don't carry purses. They point out that they, too, have things they like, but that doesn't mean they go out in public wearing them. But Charlie isn't deterred. Before long, his unselfconscious determination to carry a purse starts to affect those around him. His father puts on his favorite, though unconventional, Hawaiian shirt to go to work; his friend Charlotte paints her face, and the crossing guard wears a pair of sparkly shoes. Thanks to Charlie, everyone around him realizes that it isn't always necessary to conform to societal norms. It's more important to be true to yourself. With its humorous, energetic illustrations, this book is ideal as a read-aloud or as a story for emerging readers. It can also be used as a starting point for a discussion about gender roles.
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Inheritance
Malinda Lo
When teens Reese and David are kidnapped after revealing that they were adapted with alien DNA, Reese is forced to reconcile her new love for David, a human, with feelings for Amber, an Imrian, and make a world-changing choice.
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Inkmistress
Audrey Coulthurst
Asra is a demigod with a dangerous gift: the ability to dictate the future by writing with her blood. To keep her power secret, she leads a quiet life as a healer on a remote mountain, content to help the people in her care and spend time with Ina, the mortal girl she loves. When bandits threaten Ina's village, Asra uses her blood magic to try and help but her spell goes horribly wrong. Ina takes a savage dragon asher manifest, and swears revenge on the king, unaware Asra is at fault. To stop Ina, Asra becomes a player in lethal games among assassins, gods, and even the king himself.
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In One Person
John Irving
A compelling novel of desire, secrecy, and sexual identity, In One Person is a story of unfulfilled love - tormented, funny, and affecting - and an impassioned embrace of our sexual differences. Billy, the bisexual narrator and main character of In One Person, tells the tragicomic story (lasting more than half a century) of his life as a "sexual suspect," a phrase first used by John Irving in 1978 - in his landmark novel of "terminal cases," The World According to Garp. His most political novel since The Cider House Rules and A Prayer for Owen Meany, John Irving's In One Person is a poignant tribute to Billy's friends and lovers - a theatrical cast of characters who defy category and convention. Not least, In One Person is an intimate and unforgettable portrait of the solitariness of a bisexual man who is dedicated to making himself "worthwhile."
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In Other Lands
Sarah Rees Brennan
Sometimes it's not the kid you expect who falls through to magicland, sometimes it's...Elliott. He's grumpy, nerdy, and appalled by both the dearth of technology and the levels of fitness involved in swinging swords around. He's a little enchanted by the elves and mermaids. Despite his aversion to war, work, and most people (human or otherwise) he finds that two unlikely ideas, friendship and world peace, may actually be possible.
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In Our Mothers' House
Patricia Polacco
Three young children experience the joys and challenges of being raised by two mothers.
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In Real Life: My Journey to a Pixelated World
Joey Graceffa
A confessional, uplifting memoir from the beloved YouTube personality. It's not where you begin that matters. It's where you end up. Twenty-three year old Joey Graceffa has captured the hearts of millions of teens and young adults through his playful, sweet, and inspirational YouTube presence (not to mention his sparkling eyes and perfect hair). Yet, Joey wasn't always comfortable in his skin, and in this candid memoir, he thoughtfully looks back on his journey from pain to pride, self-doubt to self-acceptance. To his fans, Joey is that best friend who always captures the brighter side of life but also isn't afraid to get real. In the pages of his first book, he opens up about his years of struggling with family hardships and troubles at school, with cruel bullying and the sting of rejection. He tells of first loves and losses, embarrassing moments and surprising discoveries, loneliness, laughter, and life-changing forks in the road, showing us the incalculable value of finally finding and following your true passion in this world. Funny, warm-hearted, and inspiring, Joey Graceffa's story is a welcome reminder that it's not where you begin that matters, but where you end up.
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Intersex
Catherine Harper
Intersex is the condition whereby an individual is born with biological features that are simultaneously perceived as male and female. This book draws on the personal testimony of intersexed individuals, their loved ones and medical carers. It deepens our understanding of a condition that has itself only been medically understood.
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Intersex
Thea Hillman
Intersex (For Lack of a Better Word) chronicles one person’s search for self in a world obsessed with normal. What is “intersex”? According to the Intersex Society of North America, the word describes someone born with sex chromosomes, genitalia, or an internal reproductive system that are neither clearly male nor clearly female. In first-person prose as intimate as a diary, Thea Hillman redefines memoir in a series of compelling stories that take a no-holds-barred look at sex, gender, family, and community. Whether she’s pondering quirky family tendencies (“Drag”), reflecting on “queerness” (“Another”), or recounting scintillating adventures in San Francisco’s sex clubs, Hillman’s brave and fierce vision for cultural and societal change shines through.
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Into the Beautiful North
Luis Alberto Urrea
Nineteen-year-old Nayeli works at a taco shop in her Mexican village and dreams about her father, who journeyed to the US when she was young. Recently, it has dawned on her that he isn't the only man who has left town. In fact, there are almost no men in the village--they've all gone north. While watching The Magnificent Seven, Nayeli decides to go north herself and recruit seven men--her own "Siete Magníficos"--to repopulate her hometown and protect it from the bandidos who plan on taking it over.
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Introducing Teddy
Jessica Walton
Errol's best friend and teddy, Thomas, is sad because he wishes he were a girl, not a boy teddy, but what only matters to both of them is that they are friends.
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I See Reality: Twelve Short Stories About Real Life
Grace Kendall
Popular young-adult authors weave together questions of identity, loss, and redemption into poignant tales for today's teens.
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Is That For a Boy or a Girl?
S. Bear Bergman
Meet some awesome kids who have gotten pretty tired of being told that certain things are for girls and others just for boys. See how they mix and match everything they like to get what suits them best!
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Is Your Family Like Mine?
Lois Abramchik
In this book, a 5 year old girl named Armetha has two mothers who raise her. She begins to become curious about other families and asks all of her friends “Who is in your family?” She quickly becomes aware that all of her friends come from different families; some are nuclear while others have a step parent, single parent, or foster parent. Armetha and her friends decide that while their families are different, their common bond is love, and that is what makes a family. This is great to introduce to a group of children from different backgrounds to help them relate to one another.
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It Gets Better: Coming Out, Overcoming Bullying, and Creating a Life Worth Living
Dan Savage and Terry Miller
Growing up isn't easy. Many young people face daily tormenting and bullying, and this is especially true for LGBT kids and teens. It Gets Better is a collection of original essays and expanded testimonials written to teens from celebrities, political leaders, and everyday people, because while many LGBT teens can't see a positive future for themselves, we can.
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It Looks Like This
Rafi Mittlefehldt
Moving to a new city and joining an evangelical church despite his own reluctance, artistic Mike is bullied by a father who wants him to play sports and toughen up, a situation that is complicated by Mike's growing feelings for another newcomer.
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It’s Not Like It’s a Secret
Misa Sugiura
When her family moves to California, 16 year old Sana Kiyohara falls for the beautiful and smart Jamie Ramirez but struggles with differences between their diverse friend groups, a boy's sweet but unrequited affection, and her father's increasingly obvious affair.
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It’s Okay to Sparkle
Avery Jackson
The inspirational story, told in her own words, of 7-year-old Avery Jackson, who was assigned male at birth, but has now transitioned into a young girl, tells the story of how she realized she was a girl and how she helped her parents and friends to understand her transition. Her heart-warming story covers themes of friendship, bullying and self-esteem. Whether you're into dolls, ninja warriors or teddy bears, climbing trees, Tae Kwon Do or ballet, this book lets readers know that it's okay to be who you want to be. Avery's words are incredibly wise and articulate for such a young person and she will undoubtably provide support and inspiration to other families in similar situations.