Whether you’re heading out to see the solar eclipse tomorrow or staying away from the fuss, check out these stellar LGBTQ-inclusive picture, chapter, and middle grade books that feature astronomy and space travel! (I was an astronomy major, so this was an especially fun list for me to pull together.)
My metric for choosing these books was that they have something to do with astronomy, astronomers, or space travel, and don’t simply have “sun,” “moon,” or “star” in the name as a metaphor (though you can search the database for those terms if you want books like that, too).
No, there’s nothing particularly “queer” about these topics, but as the many books about Sally Ride show us, queer people are a part of these fields as well, and it’s wonderful to see books that inspire children to reach for the stars, no matter their identities or those of their families.
Click titles or images for reviews!
A lovely story of a girl, her two parents (a dad and one of ambiguous gender), and a gentle message about our place in the universe.A maiden and a princess (who has an interest in astronomy) fall in love with the support of their families in this empowering fairy tale.A boy is upset that he can no longer see the stars after he and his two moms move to the city–until he goes on a magical journey one night to find the North Star. A nonbinary child finds inspiration and self-acceptance by dreaming they are traveling to the moon and planets.A simple picture book biography of astronaut Sally Ride that mentions “her partner, Tam.”A good biography of Ride for those ready for something a little more substantial than the picture-book biographies, but still at a reasonably easy reading level.A biography geared towards newly independent readers and thus fairly simple and straightforward, but that covers the highlights of Ride’s life well, with bold illustrations enhancing the narrative.This middle grade biography stands out for being written by Ride’s partner, Tam O’Shaughnessy, and being full of photographs of Ride’s life, as well as lovely domestic details about their life together.A solid biography and part of the chapter book series inspired by bestselling She Persisted, by Chelsea Clinton and Alexandra Boiger.A dual-perspective middle grade story of two girls with a love of engineering and a crush on each other, who are also each struggling with different family difficulties.A girl named Pluto, who has a love of astronomy, must navigate her new diagnosis of depression and anxiety, along with other people’s expectations of her in this thoughtful middle grade novel.A delightful graphic novel centering a girl with two divorced moms, living in space.A girl with two dads and a love of astronomy must unravel a mystery at summer camp in this quirky and fun graphic novel.
