LGBTQIA2s+ people have long used symbols to signify their identities, both as a way of communicating to each other at times when being out wasn’t safe, and as an expression of pride. This book explains many of those symbols, from ones that are well-known today (like the rainbow flag and unicorns) to lesser-known or historical ones (green carnations and violets), and many more. Readers will even learn about “Polari,” a slang used by queer people in the U.K. of the 1920s.
Each symbol is explained with a few brief paragraphs of text by the editors at Jessica Kingsley Publishers. Readers will learn, for example, that pink and black triangles were originally used in Nazi Germany to persecute the queer community, although they have since been reclaimed.
Most of the symbols relate to gay or lesbian identities, although a couple of symbols for asexuality are included, too. There are unfortunately no symbols defined here that are related specifically to transgender, nonbinary, bisexual, intersex, or two-spirit identities, although the book uses the long-form acronym LGBTQIA2s+. (Nonbinary and trans flags are shown on the cover, but get no interior explanation.) Readers may wish to see the publisher’s The Big Book of Pride Flags to fill in some of the gaps here.
Illustrator Jem Milton provides cheery images for each symbol, showing not just the symbols themselves, but people using them. (One small quibble: The intersex-inclusive Progress Pride flag is shown attached to a pole by its rainbow-striped side, rather than (correctly) its triangle-covered side.)
Discussion questions at the end ask readers to reflect both on the symbols in history and how symbols are used today.
This isn’t a book for introducing readers to LGBTQIA2s+ culture (it never explains what that acronym means, for example), but offers an intriguing, if incomplete, look at one aspect of our history and culture, best for readers with some knowledge who wish to know more.
