LGBTQ+ Young Adult Gritty Drama Books

Reading level : 14 and up

I am Cal Adams what does that mean?

Sixteen years old.

Black hair.

Blue eyes.

Short.

Gay.

For Cal, coming out is explosive, but that is nothing compared to the fallout from his family, friends and foes. When events in Cal's life reach critical, he is shaken to his core. Can he rely on his loved ones to help avoid meltdown?

'A devastatingly raw reminder that some LGBTQ+ kids still face prejudice, hate and a daily struggle just to live their lives. But Fall Out is also full of hope, humour and the promise that things will, eventually, get better.' SIMON JAMES GREEN (author of Noah Can't Even and Alex in Wonderland)

Suitable for 14 - 18 years.

Arvin Ahmadi has written a novel that is authentic, hilarious and heart-wrenching all at once. A unique point of view combined with riveting storytelling, How It All Blew Up will grab you from the first page and won’t let go – Angie Thomas, #1 New York Times bestselling author of THE HATE U GIVE and ON THE COME UP

Eighteen-year-old Amir Azadi always knew that coming out to his Muslim family would be messy, but he wasn’t expecting it to end in an airport interrogation room. Now, he’s telling his side of the story to the stern-faced officer.

Amir has to explain why he ran away to Rome (boys, bullies, blackmail) and what he was doing there for a month (dates in the Sistine Chapel, friends who helped him accept who he is, and, of course, drama) . . . all while his mum, dad and little sister are being interrogated in the room next door.

A nuanced take on growing up brown, Muslim and gay in today’s America, HOW IT ALL BLEW UP is the story of one boy’s struggle to come out to his family, and how that painful process exists right alongside his silly, sexy romp through Italy.

Author: Arvin Ahmadi
Format: Paperback
Pages: 288
ISBN: 9781471409929

Reading level : 14 years and up.

"A powerful, honest, heart-tugging, nail-biting, so-real-it-reaches-into-your-bones story about suicide and mental health and the ways in which too many of us struggle alone. Except we're not alone. Bill Konigsberg makes that beautifully, movingly clear. Stunning." Jennifer Niven, bestselling author of All the Bright Places.

Aaron and Tillie don't know each other, but they are both struggling with life.

They arrive at a New York bridge at the same time, intending to jump  At that moment in time, there are four things that could happen:

Aaron jumps and Tillie doesn't.

Tillie jumps and Aaron doesn't.

They both jump.

Neither of them jumps. Or maybe all four things happen... A beautiful and honest story to break, and then mend, the heart.

“This absorbing, lifesaving novel is our teen Book of the Month pick for September. From acclaimed author Bill Konigsberg, the story is told across four alternate timelines. Heart-breaking, life-affirming and beautifully written, this perfectly pitched contemporary Young Adult novel sees a tough subject handled with humour, compassion and unflinching truth.

Two teenagers, strangers to each other, have decided to jump from the same bridge at the same time. Aaron and Tillie don’t know each other, but they are both feeling suicidal, and arrive at the George Washington Bridge at the same time, intending to jump. Aaron is a gay misfit struggling with depression and loneliness. Tillie isn’t sure what her problem is – only that she will never be good enough. On the bridge, there are four things that could happen: Aaron jumps and Tillie doesn’t. Tillie jumps and Aaron doesn’t. They both jump. Neither of them jumps. Or maybe all four things happen, in this astonishing and insightful novel.”

 

Reading Age: 12 - 17 years.

Winner of the Scelte di classe 2019 Zoe Bird is going nowhere fast. She's angry and lonely, and her only true friend is her granny, whose Alzheimer's is worsening.

When her parents put Granny in a home, Zoe decides now is the time to break free. She smuggles Granny out and together they hit the tracks on a cross-country trip to find Zoe's long-lost uncle. But there will be some home truths along the way. . .

An emotional story about family, surviving school and being true to yourself for fans of The Art of Being Normal and Unbecoming.

Author: Allan Stratton
Format: Paperback
Pages: 244
ISBN: 9781783445219

Reading level - 12 to 17 years.

In this tender-hearted debut, set against the tumultuous backdrop of life in 1973, when homosexuality is still considered a mental illness, two boys defy all the odds and fall in love.

The year is 1973. The Watergate hearings are in full swing. The Vietnam War is still raging. And homosexuality is still officially considered a mental illness. In the midst of these trying times is sixteen-year-old Jonathan Collins, a bullied, anxious, asthmatic kid, who aside from an alcoholic father and his sympathetic neighbour and friend Starla, is completely alone. To cope, Jonathan escapes to the safe haven of his imagination, where his hero David Bowie's Ziggy Stardust and dead relatives, including his mother, guide him through the rough terrain of his life. In his alternate reality, Jonathan can be anything: a superhero, an astronaut, Ziggy Stardust, himself, or completely normal and not a boy who likes other boys. When he completes his treatments, he will be normal--at least he hopes. But before that can happen, Web stumbles into his life. Web is everything Jonathan wishes he could be: fearless, fearsome and, most importantly, not ashamed of being gay.

Jonathan doesn't want to like brooding Web, who has secrets all his own. Jonathan wants nothing more than to be fixed once and for all. But he's drawn to Web anyway. Web is the first person in the real world to see Jonathan completely and think he's perfect. Web is a kind of escape Jonathan has never known. For the first time in his life, he may finally feel free enough to love and accept himself as he is.

A poignant coming-of-age tale, Ziggy, Stardust and Me heralds the arrival of a stunning and important new voice in Young Adult.

Author	James Brandon
Format	Hardback
Pages	368
ISBN	9780525517641