The LGBTQ-inclusive picture books published in 2024 have been exuberant, affirming, and informative. Here are some that stand out.
Author, illustrator, and publisher are listed after each title. Click titles for full reviews.
In several warm and fun tales, the queerness is incidental. Ones with two-mom families include Just Us (Molly Beth Griffin, Anait Semirdzhyan, Charlesbridge), a comforting winter holiday story about embracing change; Leo and the Pink Marker (Mariyka Foster, Peachtree), inspired by (but diverging from) the classic Harold and the Purple Crayon; and The Girl Who Loves Bugs (Lily Murray, Jenny Løvlie, Peachtree), about the titular girl and a mishap at a family reunion. For two-dad families, try Saturday Is Pancake Day (Bernadette Green, Daniel Gray-Barnett, Scribble), a hilarious story of luring a parent out of bed; Princess Pru and the Switcheroo (Maureen Fergus, Danesh Mohiuddin, Owlkids), in which Princess Pru and her best friend Oggy the Ogre switch places, thinking life is better for the other.
For growing queer families, one title with particularly broad appeal is We’re Happy You’re Here (Julie Wilkins, Brady Sato, Orca), a celebration of the many special people who helped bring a child into a family, including queer and non-queer couples, solo parents, siblings, grandparents, gamete donors, surrogates, and a variety of professionals. Additionally, All Our Love (Kari-Lynn Winters, Scot Ritchie, North Winds), stars a girl with two dads writing a letter to her new baby brother; and Joyful Song: A Naming Story (Lesléa Newman, Susan Gal, Levine Querido), is the gorgeously illustrated story of a Jewish boy with two moms excited about the naming ceremony for his baby sister.
Two books affirm babies’ gender identity and expression: It’s a They (Lindsay Herriot, Orca), a board book in which siblings welcome a new baby without applying gender labels; and Who You Will Be (Taylor Rouanzion, Stacey Chomiak, Philomel), where two parents (who can be read as two women or a woman and a nonbinary person) show their newborn the many non-gendered possibilities of colors, toys, and clothes, modeling unconditional love.
Several titles focus on two-dad adoptive families: Harper Becomes a Big Sister (Seamus Kirst, Karen Bunting, Magination) and Real Siblings, which continues Harper’s story as she affirms her sibling relationship in the face of questioning; Miles Comes Home (Sarah Brannen, Forrest Burdett, Little Bee), about a boy going to live with his new dads after being in a foster home; Chloe and the Fireflies (Chris Clarkson, Julie Jarema, Abrams), about a child being fostered by two dads and hoping this will be her permanent home.
Other family situations are covered in Goodbye, Hello: A Going Home Travel Adventure (Angela H. Dale, Daniel Wiseman, Holiday House), which follows two siblings and one mom as they travel across the world to be with the children’s other mom, who is in the Navy; Circle of Love (Monique Gray Smith, Nicole Neidhardt, Heartdrum), an exploration of LGBTQ identities and families within indigenous (Cree) culture; My Guncle and Me (Jonathan Merritt, Joanna Carillo, Running Press), in which a boy who feels like an outsider gets wise advice from his gay uncle; and The Broken Heart (Aaron Chan, Josiane Vlitos, Rocky Pond Books), about a girl who wants to help her brother heal after he breaks up with his boyfriend.
Queer crushes and romance are celebrated in Bobby and the Big Valentine (Timmy Woitas, Addy Rivera Sonda, Penguin Workshop), about a boy wanting to make a Valentine’s card for his crush; and Nen and the Lonely Fisherman (Ian Eagleton, James Mayhew, Little Bee), a queer fairy tale evoking the classic Little Mermaid.
Biographies include What I Must Tell the World: How Lorraine Hansberry Found Her Voice (Jay Leslie, Loveis Wise, Zando); Jimmy’s Rhythm & Blues: The Extraordinary Life of James Baldwin (Michelle Meadows, Jamiel Law, HarperCollins); Glenn Burke, Game Changer (Phil Bildner, Daniel J. O’Brien; Farrar, Straus and Giroux); Queer and Fearless: Poems Celebrating the Lives of LGBTQ+ Heroes (Rob Sanders, Harry Woodgate, Penguin Workshop); and the board book Who Is Billie Jean King? (Lisbeth Kaiser and Who HQ, Risa Rodil, Penguin Workshop).
Several books relate LGBTQ history and myth: The ABCs of Queer History (Seema Yasmin, Lucy Kirk, Workman), a simple introduction; Rainbow Allies (Nancy Churnin, Izzy Evans, Beaming Books), the true story of three kids who took action when their neighbors’ Pride flag was stolen; Love of the Half-Eaten Peach (Lee Wind, Jieting Chen, Reycraft), the retelling of an ancient Chinese legend celebrating love between two men.
Gender identity takes center stage in the celebratory Hooray for He, She, Ze, and They (Lindz Amer, Kate Alizadeh, Simon & Schuster); Marley’s Pride (Joëlle Retener, DeAnne Wiley, Barefoot), about a nonbinary, transgender child attending Pride with their nonbinary, transgender grandparent; Still My Tessa (Sylv Chiang, Mathias Ball, Scholastic), about a girl learning to support her nonbinary sibling; and A Song for Nolan (Rushie Ellenwood, Sally Chen, Little Bee) where a nonbinary kid must speak up for themself in the face of gendered activities.
Numerous books star gender creative boys. Several show them overcoming (or helping others overcome) disapproval: Nail Polish Is Too for Boys! (Emma-Claire Sunday, Caitlin O’Dwyer, Sunbird); Free to Be Fabulous (David McMullin, Robbie Cathro, Clarion); and The Rainbow Parade (Shane Jordan, Jieting Chen, Sourcebooks); others are more purely celebratory: The Dress in the Window (Robert Tregoning, Pippa Curnick, Flyaway); Getting Glam at Gram’s (Sara Weed, Erin Hawryluk, Arsenal Pulp); and Gorgeously Me! (Jonathan Van Ness, Kamala Nair, Penguin).
Community and social issues come to the fore in We Are a Class (Rob Sanders, Hannah Abbo, Beaming Books), which explores what it means to be part of a diverse and inclusive school class; and Jacob’s Missing Book (Sarah and Ian Hoffman, Chris Case, Magination), a timely story about censorship.
For full reviews and books I didn’t have space for here (such as Pride-themed ones that felt best for the spring), visit my Database of LGBTQ Family Books.
Originally published as my Mombian newspaper column.
