This is an annual feature that runs a little differently from the rest on LGBTQReads, as the post builds on itself each year and new titles/sections are added with asterisks. These books are all queer titles by Black authors, the vast majority of which star Black main characters. (Obviously this isn’t remotely exhaustive.)

Sites

Sistahs on the Shelf – SotS is run by Rena, a Black lesbian who reviews Black lesbian books. You can also follow on Twitter at @SotS!

WoC in Romance – this is a site highlighting all Romance written by WoC, but there’s a page just for LGBTQ Romances. It’s run by Rebekah Weatherspoon, whose name you may recognize as being a prolific author of LGBTQ lit herself! You can follow on Twitter at @WOCInRomance, and make sure you check out their Patreon; link is in the pinned tweet!

Black Lesbian Literary Collective – To nab from their site, “The Black Lesbian Literary Collective creates a nurturing and sustainable environment for Black lesbian and queer women of color writers.” Looking for more reviews of Black lesbian fic? Ta da! The site is new, so it’s not packed with posts just yet, but there is already an active radio show linked to it. Find them on Twitter at @LezWriters.

The Brown Bookshelf – this is a site dedicated to Black kidlit; here are the posts that come up if you search LGBT.

Books

*=new additions this year

Picture Books

• My Rainbow by DeShanna and Trinity Neal*

Middle-Grade

• Hurricane Child by Kacen Callender (Stonewall Award Winner)
• King and the Dragonflies by Kacen Callender (National Book Award finalist, CSK Award Nominee)
• Meow or Never by Jazz Taylor*
• In the Key of Us by Mariama Lockington*
• The House You Pass on the Way by Jacqueline Woodson

Young Adult

• Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo* (New York Times and Indie bestseller)
• The Wicker King by K. Ancrum
• The Weight of the Stars by K. Ancrum
• Darling by K. Ancrum*
• The Black Flamingo by Dean Atta (Stonewall Award winner)
• This is What it Feels Like by Rebecca Barrow
• Bad Things Happen Here by Rebecca Barrow*
• Cinderella is Dead by Kalynn Bayron
• The Inevitability of Home by Ciera Burch*
• A Phoenix First Must Burn ed. by Patrice Caldwell
• Where Shadows Reign by Patrice Caldwell*
• This is Kind of an Epic Love Story by Kacen Callender
• Felix Ever After by Kacen Callender
• Little & Lion by Brandy Colbert (Stonewall Award winner)
• Things We Couldn’t Say by Jay Coles*
• The Taking of Jake Livingston by Ryan Douglass
• Pet by Akwaeke Emezi (National Book Award finalist)
• The Passing Playbook by Isaac Fitzsimons
• Full Disclosure by Camryn Garrett
• The Secrets of Eden by Brandon Goode
• We Deserve Monuments by Jas Hammonds*
• Dread Nation by Justina Ireland (New York Times bestseller)
• Yesterday is History by Kosoko Jackson
• You Should See Me in a Crown by Leah Johnson (Indie bestseller, Reese Witherspoon’s Book Club inaugural YA pick)
• Rise to the Sun by Leah Johnson
• Let’s Talk About Love by Claire Kann
• If it Makes You Happy by Claire Kann
• The Marvelous by Claire Kann*
• Meet Cute Diary by Emery Lee*
• Forever is Now by Mariama J. Lockington*
• 37 Things I Love (in No Particular Order) by Kekla Magoon
• A Blade So Black by L.L. McKinney
• Escaping Mr. Rochester by L.L. McKinney*
• Home and Away by Candice Montgomery (Bi LI)
• By Any Means Necessary by Candice Montgomery
• The Stars and the Blackness Between Them by Junauda Petrus (CSK Nominee)
• Odd One Out by Nic Stone
• Running with Lions by Julian Winters
• How to Be Remy Cameron by Julian Winters
• The Summer of Everything by Julian Winters
• Right Where I Left You by Julian Winters*
• The Beauty that Remains by Ashley Woodfolk
• Nothing Burns as Bright as You by Ashley Woodfolk*
• Black Enough ed. by Ibi Zoboi

NA/Adult (Realistic)

• Dead Dead Girls by Nekesa Afia*
• The Way Back List by Lily Anderson
• The Unfortunates by J K Chukwu
• Once Ghosted, Twice Shy by Alyssa Cole
• A Prince on Paper by Alyssa Cole
• How to Find a Princess by Alyssa Cole*
• Hamilton’s Battalion by Alyssa Cole, Courtney Milan, and Rose Lerner
• A Hundred Thousand Words by Nyrae Dawn
• Here Comes the Sun by Nicole Dennis-Benn
• Patsy by Nicole Dennis-Benn
• Jeremiah by Jayce Ellis*
• Learned Behaviors by Jayce Ellis*
• Learned Reactions by Jayce Ellis*
• For Sizakele by Yvonne Fly Onakeme Etaghene
• Girl, Woman, Other by Bernardine Evaristo
• The Women Could Fly by Megan Giddings*
• Work For It by Talia Hibbert
• Take a Hint, Dani Brown by Talia Hibbert*
• Things Hoped For by Chencia C. Higgins
• Ready, Set, Wed! by Chencia C. Higgins*
• Speak No Evil by Uzodinma Iweala
• The Spies Who Loved Her series by Katrina Jackson
• The Welcome to Seaport series by Katrina Jackson
• Neighborly by Katrina Jackson
• I’m (So) Not Over You by Kosoko Jackson*
• Being Merry by Meka James*
• Cinder Ella by S.T. Lynn
• The Summer We Got Free by Mia McKenzie
• She Called Me Woman ed. by Azeenarh Mohammed, Chitra Nagarajan, and Aisha Salau
• Under the Udala Trees by Chinelo Okparanta
• When We Speak of Nothing by Olumide Popoola
• You Make Me Wanna by Nikki Rashan
• Honey Girl by Morgan Rogers
• Real Life by Brandon Taylor (Booker Prize finalist)
• Filthy Animals by Brandon Taylor*
• The Late Americans by Brandon Taylor*
• Group Show by Brandon Taylor*
• F*ths by G.L. Thomas
• Sugar and Ice by Brooklyn Wallace
• Tailor-Made by Yolanda Wallace
• Treasure by Rebekah Weatherspoon
• So Sweet by Rebekah Weatherspoon
• Xeni by Rebekah Weatherspoon
• Harbor by Rebekah Weatherspoon*
• Bliss by Fiona Zedde
• Femme Like Her by Fiona Zedde*

NA/Adult (Speculative)

• Stone and Steel by Eboni J. Dunbar
• Black Leopard, Red Wolf by Marlon James
• To Terminator, With Love by Wes Kennedy
• Shatterproof by Xen Sanders
• An Unkindness of Ghosts by Rivers Solomon
• The Deep by Rivers Solomon
• Sorrowland by Rivers Solomon*
• The Root by Na’amen Gobert Tilahun
• Better off Red by Rebekah Weatherspoon
• Every Dark Desire by Fiona Zedde

Comics/Graphic Novels*

• Bingo Love by Tee Franklin
• Check, Please! by Ngozi Ukazu

Memoirs

• Mama: A Black, Queer Woman’s Journey to Motherhood by Nikkya Hargrove*
• All Boys Aren’t Blue by George M. Johnson (YA)
• We Are Not Broken by George M. Johnson* (YA)
• How We Fight for Our Lives by Saeed Jones
• *Fat Off, Fat On by Clarkisha Kent
• Redefining Realness by Janet Mock
• Surpassing Certainty: What My Twenties Taught Me by Janet Mock
• *Fierce Love by Francesca Royster

Poetry

• original kink by Jubi Arriola-Headley*
• The Tradition by Jericho Brown
• When the Only Light is Fire by Saeed Jones
• Black Queer Hoe by Britteney Black Rose Kapri
• Reacquainted With Life by KOKUMỌ
• The Black Unicorn by Audre Lord
• [insert] boy by Danez Smith
• Homie by Danez Smith

Featured Authors

• Katrina Jackson
• Candice Montgomery
• Julian Winters
• Kayla Ancrum
• Rebecca Barrow
• Kacen Callender
• Brandon L.G. Taylor
• Rebekah Weatherspoon

Posts

• Shop Queer Books From Black-Owned Bookstores, Part I and Part II
• Finding Queer Black Love in Literature: a Guest Post by Katrina Jackson
• Where is the Queer Black Male Voice in YA Lit?

Have more to share? Add them in the comments!