Langley-Adams Library Recommendations

Max is a biracial (White and Japanese) transgender teen boy who is learning how to grow into himself and is facing struggles with school, home, and the fact that he now has magical powers.  Max’s trusted friend Jen is the only one who knows that Max is a boy at the novel’s beginning.  Max decides to come out to his mom and dad on his 16th birthday, but his mother can’t accept the fact that her little goddess wants to transition since they are descended from the Goddess of Light, Aurora.  Max’s powers transform him into an uncomfortable frilly dress with heals, which causes him to experience dysphoria.  Max has to prove to his mother that he can be a man and use his powers in his own way to fight the darkness that feeds off of negative energy, and he finds that some of his classmates were under the darkness spell.  Max is able to find a group of friends who teach him how to be himself and help fight back the darkness that is creeping into the world, and if they d...

"One October morning, Laina gets the news that her brother was shot and killed by Boston cops. But what looks like a case of police brutality soon reveals something much stranger. Monsters are real. And they want everyone to know it. As creatures from myth and legend come out of the shadows, seeking safety through visibility, their emergence sets off a chain of seemingly unrelated events. Members of a local werewolf pack are threatened into silence. A professor follows a missing friend’s trail of bread crumbs to a mysterious secret society. And a young boy with unique abilities seeks refuge in a pro-monster organization with secrets of its own. Meanwhile, more people start disappearing, suicides and hate crimes increase, and protests erupt globally, both for and against the monsters. At the center is a mystery no one thinks to ask: Why now? What has frightened the monsters out of the dark? The world will soon find out." (goodreads.com) No Gods, No Monsters  is a weird book. H...

  “Every seven years, the Agon begins. As punishment for a past rebellion, nine Greek gods are forced to walk the earth as mortals, hunted by the descendants of ancient bloodlines, all eager to kill a god and seize their divine power and immortality. Long ago, Lore Perseous fled that brutal world in the wake of her family's sadistic murder by a rival line, turning her back on the hunt's promises of eternal glory. For years she's pushed away any thought of revenge against the man--now a god--responsible for their deaths. Yet as the next hunt dawns over New York City, two participants seek out her help: Castor, a childhood friend of Lore believed long dead, and a gravely wounded Athena, among the last of the original gods. The goddess offers an alliance against their mutual enemy and, at last, a way for Lore to leave the Agon behind forever. But Lore's decision to bind her fate to Athena's and rejoin the hunt will come at a deadly cost--and still may not be enough t...

"High schooler Ryuu knows he's transgender. But he doesn't have anyone to confide in about the confusion he feels. He can't tell his best friend, who he's secretly got a crush on, and he can't tell his mom, who's constantly asking why Ryuu is always dressing like a boy. He certainly can't tell Jin, the new transfer student who looks like just another bully. The only time Ryuu feels at ease is when he's wearing his favorite clothes. Then, and only then, the world melts away, and he can be his true self.  One day, while out shopping, Ryuu sees an unexpected sight: Jin. The kid who looked so tough in class is shopping for the same clothes that Ryuu loves. And Jin offers Ryuu a proposal: to start their own brand and create apparel to help everyone feel comfortable in their skin. At last, Ryuu has someone he can open up to--and the journey ahead might finally give him a way to express himself to everyone else. Boys Run The Riot is about a transgender tee...

Given (Series)   by Natsuki Kizu Genre: LBGTQ+ Romance The Given manga series  is a beautifully illustrated story about LGBTQ+ youth creating music, trying to figure out their feelings, and processing grief. I don't really read manga or watch anime but this series really drew me in. It was refreshing to not have a coming out story as the main focus. Blue Flag  (Series)   by Kaito Genre: LBGTQ+ Romance Blue Flag  is a manga series demonstrates the struggles of teen friendships, unrequited love, and figuring out one's path in life. It does a good job at addressing difficult topics in the true, self-conscious voice of teens. Our Dining Table  by Ori Mita Genre: LBGTQ+ Romance Our Dining Table  was a cute story about found families, food, and a little romance. I really enjoyed this manga. The illustrations were great, and the story was very sweet. It's a standalone manga with a satisfying ending. Be still my heart!​ Blue Period  (Series)   by Tsu...

"A magical island. A dangerous task. A burning secret.  Linus Baker leads a quiet, solitary life. At forty, he lives in a tiny house with a devious cat and his old records. As a Case Worker at the Department in Charge Of Magical Youth, he spends his days overseeing the well-being of children in government-sanctioned orphanages. When Linus is unexpectedly summoned by Extremely Upper Management he's given a curious and highly classified assignment: travel to Marsyas Island Orphanage, where six dangerous children reside: a gnome, a sprite, a wyvern, an unidentifiable green blob, a were-Pomeranian, and the Antichrist. Linus must set aside his fears and determine whether or not they’re likely to bring about the end of days. But the children aren’t the only secret the island keeps. Their caretaker is the charming and enigmatic Arthur Parnassus, who will do anything to keep his wards safe. As Arthur and Linus grow closer, long-held secrets are exposed, and Linus must make a choice: d...

" Skye Shin has heard it all. Fat girls shouldn’t dance. Wear bright colors. Shouldn’t call attention to themselves. But Skye dreams of joining the glittering world of K-Pop, and to do that, she’s about to break all the rules that society, the media, and even her own mother, have set for girls like her.  She’ll challenge thousands of other performers in an internationally televised competition looking for the next K-pop star, and she’ll do it better than anyone else. When Skye nails her audition, she’s immediately swept into a whirlwind of countless practices, shocking performances, and the drama that comes with reality TV. What she doesn’t count on are the highly fat-phobic beauty standards of the Korean pop entertainment industry, her sudden media fame and scrutiny, or the sparks that soon fly with her fellow competitor, Henry Cho. But Skye has her sights on becoming the world’s first plus-sized K-pop star, and that means winning the competition—without losing herself." (Go...

In  A Dark and Hollow Star , fae and faeries exist alongside humans, though they don’t reveal their true nature to them. For the past few months, partial-fae have been getting murdered and no one knows why. Arlo Jarsdel, half fae, finds herself in the middle of investigating the murders when she sees a young partial-fae girl die at a café. She teams up with Nausicaä, a disgraced former Fury, Vehan, a fae prince, and Aurelian, Vehan’s friend who must hide his love for him. Together they look for answers to why the fae kings and queens aren't trying to solve this mystery. Throughout their investigations, together and separate, they encounter a dangerous nightclub, alchemy, dangerous immortals, a secret society, and much more. I highly recommend this book for readers of YA who love fantasy! This book has multiple points-of-view, and each main character is LGBTQ. I personally had a lot of fun reading this book as well.  A Dark and Hollow Star  is a highly enjoyable read! Darc...

" First Son Alex Claremont-Diaz is the closest thing to a prince this side of the Atlantic. With his intrepid sister and the Veep’s genius granddaughter, they’re the White House Trio, a beautiful millennial marketing strategy for his mother, President Ellen Claremont. International socialite duties do have downsides—namely, when photos of a confrontation with his longtime nemesis Prince Henry at a royal wedding leak to the tabloids and threaten American/British relations. The plan for damage control: staging a fake friendship between the First Son and the Prince. As President Claremont kicks off her reelection bid, Alex finds himself hurtling into a secret relationship with Henry that could derail the campaign and upend two nations. What is worth the sacrifice? How do you do all the good you can do? And, most importantly, how will history remember you?" (Goodreads.com) This book was a fun, steamy, LGBTQ+ romance that I couldn't put down. If you like enemies to lovers roma...

" In  Find Me , Aciman shows us Elio’s father, Samuel, on a trip from Florence to Rome to visit Elio, who has become a gifted classical pianist. A chance encounter on the train with a beautiful young woman upends Sami’s plans and changes his life forever. Elio soon moves to Paris, where he, too, has a consequential affair, while Oliver, now a New England college professor with a family, suddenly finds himself contemplating a return trip across the Atlantic." (Goodreads.com) Find Me  was a satisfying sequel to "Call Me by Your Name." It was great to meet the characters again and see how their lives panned out. This book again focuses on Elio and Oliver but it also gives a whole story line through the perspective of Elio's father. Aciman does a wonderful job at describing the complexity of relationships, either familial or romantic, and conveying the emotions that the characters go through. They stick with you long after you've devoured this book. Meghan McCab...

“Laura Dean, the most popular girl in high school, was Frederica Riley's dream girl: charming, confident, and SO cute. There's just one problem: Laura Dean is maybe not the greatest girlfriend.”  (Goodreads.com) Let me start with two things, I hate Laura Dean, and Frederica needs to grow a backbone. Tamaki did a great job at creating characters that depict poor relationship habits. The main character keeps choosing a poisonous relationship over her friends time and time again. As an outside observer it’s easy to see what’s wrong, and easy to get frustrated when characters make the same mistakes over and over again. I think this graphic novel will be a good example for teen readers to see what it’s like to be blinded by “love” and then hopefully learn what some of those warning signs look like. If the characters annoy you, like they did me, at least you get to enjoy Rosemary Valero-O'Connell’s beautiful illustrations.  I recommend this book if you like LGBTQ stories, te...

“Now that high school is over, Ari is dying to move to the big city with his ultra-hip band―if he can just persuade his dad to let him quit his job at their struggling family bakery. Though he loved working there as a kid, Ari cannot fathom a life wasting away over rising dough and hot ovens. But while interviewing candidates for his replacement, Ari meets Hector, an easygoing guy who loves baking as much as Ari wants to escape it. As they become closer over batches of bread, love is ready to bloom . . . that is, if Ari doesn’t ruin everything.(Goodreads.com) Want to read a cute romance this summer? Have you finished all of ‘The Great British Bake Off’ and need to watch more people baking? Can you relate to not knowing what you want to do with your life and have the urgent need to get out of your hometown? Then this graphic novel is for you! Panetta gives us a cute romance that has its ups and downs, but ultimately ends in a satisfying way. Get some baked goods and start reading! ...

"Amanda can’t figure out what’s so exciting about kissing. It’s just a lot of teeth clanking, germ swapping, closing of eyes so you can’t see that Godzilla-sized zit just inches from your own hormonal monstrosity. All of her seven kisses had been horrible in different ways, but nothing compared to the awfulness that followed Kiss Number Eight. An exploration of sexuality, family, and faith, Kiss Number Eight is a coming-of-age tale filled with humor and hope." (Goodreads.com) Kiss Number 8 is about so much more than kissing. To me this graphic novel is about struggling with faith, holding on to friends who aren’t that great for you, and dealing with family issues. This graphic novel was not quite what I was expecting, and I really enjoyed it. It brought me back to when I was in school. It allowed me to revisit my younger self and see how my thoughts and opinions have changed. It’s ending is also very sweet. Who doesn’t love a happy ending? I recommend this graphic n...

“In this quick and easy guide to queer and trans identities, cartoonists Mady G and JR Zuckerberg guide you through the basics of the LGBT+ world! Covering essential topics like sexuality, gender identity, coming out, and navigating relationships, this guide explains the spectrum of human experience through informative comics, interviews, worksheets, and imaginative examples. A great starting point for anyone curious about queer and trans life, and helpful for those already on their own journeys!”  (Goodreads.com) This non-fiction graphic novel was informative and fun. It’s easy to digest, which makes it a great companion to have in every school and household. It stresses that identity is a process, and because of this, it gives readers the terms they need to help them through that process. Its colorful and fanciful drawings make it a fun read. It allows the reader to see the characters for who they are, rather than a gendered being, which is great for non-binary individuals. ...

In the world of  We Set the Dark on Fire , men have two wives – a Primera and a Segunda. Primeras are supposed to be men’s equals in all things public, and Segundas are softer, the ones who have the babies and worry about their home’s aesthetics.  Daniela is about to graduate school, where she has been trained to be a Primera her whole life. When one of her biggest secrets is about to be exposed, she is saved by a member of La Voz, a resistance group that Dani has always been told to fear.  She goes on to graduate and marry Mateo Garcia – a boy whose family is high up in politics. The Segunda, Carmen, was anything but a friend to Dani in school. And when La Voz calls upon Dani to work for them, she knows what she has to do – or else they’ll find a way to expose the secret she’s worked so long to conceal.  I highly recommend this book for anyone who is looking for Latinx representation, LGBTQ representation, and a world based on a different kind of mythology.  ...

“2018 marks the 150th anniversary of the classic Little Women by Louisa May Alcott. Join Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy as they are re-envisioned as a blended family living in modern day NYC in this beautiful, full-color graphic novel that's perfect for fans of Raina Telemeier's Smile, Svetlana Chmakova's Awkward, and Victoria Jamieson's Roller Girl.” (Goodreads.com) ‘Little Women’ is near and dear to my heart. I love the book and the films, so naturally I would read the graphic novel. It was interesting to see little women portrayed in the present day. I liked that the characters reflected the diversity of families and addressed the issues that we face today. It wasn’t my favorite adaptation of ‘Little Women’ but I think it would be great for younger readers to be introduced to the March family. I recommend this graphic novel if you are interesred in LGBTQ coming out stories, or if you’d like to read a shortened version of ‘Little Women’ depicted in current day situat...

“In this graphic memoir, Alison Bechdel charts her fraught relationship with her late father.”* I received this graphic memoir in a book swap. The art was very intricate. It was interesting to see a personal story told in this fashion. Bechdel has a very vivid memory of her life growing up. I wasn’t really into this memoir. Since it was so dense with text and information it took longer to read. There were a lot of words that most people, myself included, would have to pull out a dictionary often to understand. No room for “lazy” reading. It felt very academic to me. This closely mirrors Bechdel’s interactions with her father, so maybe it was written this way on purpose. Overall, it wasn’t my cup of tea. I recommend you read this if you like coming of age LGBTQ+ characters, graphic memoirs, and stories of family dynamics. Meghan McCabe Youth Service Librarian Available through the MVLC Catalog *Goodreads.com

“ In 1955, eighteen-year-old Janet Jones keeps the love she shares with her best friend Marie a secret... Sixty-two years later, Abby Zimet can’t stop thinking about her senior project and its subject—classic 1950s lesbian pulp fiction… In this novel told in dual narratives... author Robin Talley weaves together the lives of two young women connected across generations through the power of words. A stunning story of bravery, love, how far we’ve come and how much farther we have to go.”* Note: I listened to this book. The narrator does weird voices that are rather annoying to try and differentiate the characters. If you are interested in pursuing this book, I suggest reading it rather than listening to it. I was excited to read this book. The premise of two timelines dealing with queer characters and pulp fiction interested me. Unfortunately, I found that the characters annoyed me. This could have been influenced by the narrators voice. The only saving grace of this book was to...

‘Call Me by Your Name’ is about a romance that grows between a seventeen year-old boy and an older man that his father highered as a research assistant in 1980s Italy. Let me paint a picture for you. It was a cold winter day. The wind was blowing and the snow was whipping against my window. I was getting settled in with a warm blanket, about to watch a movie, when suddenly the power went out. While the sounds of my neighbours generators revved up I sat in despair, not having one of my own, and knew it was going to be a long day. I lit the stove, made some tea, put on all of my warm clothes, and settled in on the couch. Reading a book seemed like the best remedy to my predicament. As my fingers got colder, I put on gloves. As the day grew darker, I lit some candles. When the candles weren’t enough, I got my flashlight. I devoured the book. By the end of the freezing day I had four pages left. I decided to save them for the next day. Not only did I need to sleep, but I also nee...

The Raging Ones has three points of view: Franny, Court, and Mykal. They live in a world where everyone knows the day that they will die. To not die on the day determined for you is unheard of, but somehow all three of them dodge their deathdays. As each one of them dodges their deathday, they find themselves mentally (and somewhat physically) linked to each other. For better or worse, they can feel what the other two feel. Dodging their death days puts them in danger, so they all work together toward a particular goal: Getting away from their planet so no one discovers their secret. Between the world-building and the writing, you will have a difficult time waiting for the next book in this duology, which comes out in August 2019! Darcy Lepore Library Director Available at the Langley Adams Library