Wrap-up: June 2020

It’s the end of June and another Pride month, which means it’s time for a wrap-up. As you may remember, at the beginning of the month, each of us set the other a TBR of six books. Well, now you can find out how we got on with that!

TBR Updates

Did you finish your tbr? If not, what didn’t you get to?

Anna: no. Didn’t read King and the Dragonflies, Girls Made of Snow and Glass, or Picture Us in the Light.

Charlotte: yes.

What was your favourite read?

Anna: Don’t Call Us Dead.

Charlotte: Felix Ever After, easily. The rest were a little meh in comparison.

What was your most disappointing read?

Anna: Immodest Acts.

Charlotte: Probably The Hotel Whodunit. I love the Goldie Vance comics, and this was cute, it just didn’t have enough of Diane.

What we read

Anna

Don’t Call Us Dead by Danez Smith (poetry) – 5 🌈
The Falling in Love Montage by Ciara Smyth (lesbian mc & li) – 3 🌈
Autopsy by Donte Collins (poetry) – 3 🌈
🔥 Crush by Richard Siken (poetry) – 5 🌈
Same Sex Unions in Premodern Europe by John Boswell (nonfiction) – 5 🌈

Immodest Acts by Judith Brown (nonfiction) – 3 🌈

Charlotte

The Lamentation of Their Women by Kai Ashante Wilson (bi character; tw for gore, violence, police brutality) – 3 🌈
Homosexuality in Renaissance England by Alan Bray (nonfiction) – 4 🌈
Sister Outsider by Audre Lorde (essays) – 4 🌈
The Stonewall Reader by NYPL (nonfiction) – 4 🌈
Ring Shout by P. Djèlí Clark (lesbian character) – 4 🌈

The Unconquered City by K. A. Doore (pan mc, nonbinary li, wlw & mlm side characters) – 4 🌈 [review]
Sonetos del amor oscuro by Federico García Lorca (poetry) – 4 🌈
Take a Hint, Dani Brown by Talia Hibbert (Black bi mc) – 5 🌈 [review]
How it All Blew Up by Arvin Ahmadi (Iranian American gay mc, gay side characters) – 4 🌈 [review]
Outlaw Marriages by Rodger Streitmatter (nonfiction) – 3 🌈

You Should See Me in a Crown by Leah Johnson (Black bi mc, wlw li) – 4 🌈
The Empire of Gold by S. A. Chakraborty (bi character, gay character) – 5 🌈
Love in Colour by Bolu Babalola (Black bi mc, wlw li) – 4 🌈 [review]
Felix Ever After by Kacen Callender (Black mlm trans demiboy mc, Black Puerto Rican gay li, Black Bengali mlm li) – 5 🌈
Heart and Hand by Rebel Carter (bi characters, polyamory) – 3.5 🌈

A Seditious Affair by K. J. Charles (gay mcs) – 2.5 🌈
A Study in Honor by Claire O’Dell (Black wlw mcs) – 2.5 🌈
Goldie Vance: The Hotel Whodunit by Lilliam Rivera (Black wlw mc) – 3 🌈
🔥 Her Every Wish by Courtney Milan (Black bi mc) – 4 🌈
The Color Purple by Alice Walker (Black wlw mcs) – 3 🌈

Escaping Exodus by Nicky Drayden (Black wlw mcs, Black trans side characters) – 2.5 🌈
Yellow Jessamine by Caitlin Starling (wlw mcs) – 3 🌈 [review]
Dead to Her by Sarah Pinborough (bi mcs) – 2 🌈 [review]
This Time Will be Different by Misa Sugiura (bi li, lesbian side characters) – 3.5 🌈
Undone by Bryce Oakley (lesbian mc, bi mc) – 3 🌈

Mostly Dead Things by Kristen Arnett (lesbian mc) – 3 🌈 [review]
Crownchasers by Rebecca Coffindaffer (pan mc, gay, lesbian & nonbinary side characters) – 5 🌈 [review]

What we watched (and listened to)

Charlotte

Last Ferry (2019) dir. Jaki Bradley (gay mc & side characters, Black gay side characters) – 2 🌈
Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts cr. Radford Sechrist & Bill Wolkoff (Black gay character)

Anna

Pariah (2011) dir. Dee Rees (Black lesbian mc, Black cast, sapphic side characters) – 3.5 🌈
Benjamin (2018) dir. Simon Amstell (gay mc, gay characters) – 3 🌈
Love Victor (S1) cr. Isaac Aptaker & Elizabeth Berger (Latino gay mc, gay characters) – 2 🌈

On the blog

• Our TBRs for the month.
• Interviews with Renée Dahlia and Bill Elenbark.
• Rec lists for songs from April, songs from May, Twitter’s favourite gay books, and recs based on Gilbert Baker’s pride flag.
• If you liked this book, film, music, and straight media, try…
• A discussion post.
• Our June book of the month.
• An ARC review of The Falling in Love Montage.
• All of July’s releases.

On other blogs

• The Quiet Pond celebrated Pride Month with a series of interviews and posts with LGBT creators.
• Dahlia @ LGBTQReads featured a guest post by Nicole Melleby and revealed the cover for A Curse of Roses.
• Rhi @ Marshmallow Harmonies ranked all her owned LGBT books.
• Delph @ Delph Reads reviewed This Time Will Be Different.
• Helena & Cris @ Helina Books recced 28 LGBT books.
• Amy @ Bookish Heights recced her favourite graphic novels.
• Megan & Lauren @ YA Bookers recced their favourite LGBT books.
• Emily @ Emily Kate Reads recced some sapphic books by Black authors.
• Fadwa @ Word Wonders posted an interview with Lyla Lee and another with Leah Johnson.
• May @ Forever and Everly recced over 50 books about and by QPOC that should be on your TBR.
• Michelle @ Magical Reads posted a massive list of 2020’s gay YA releases.

So, how was June for you? Did you read or watch anything amazing?

Since you’re here, please consider doing any number of the following to support Black Lives Matter, and the protests regarding police brutality in the USA.

Donate to bail funds and supplies for protestors, gofundmes of victims of police violence, mutual aid organisations and Black-owned businesses impacted by the violence.

You can donate even if you have no funds by watching videos where all ad revenue will go towards the BLM movement.

Sign petitions.

Get in contact with mayors and district attorneys, and maintain pressure on them.

Educate yourself further through the resources found on the carrd and others.

Pride was initiated following riots against police violence and raids, and those at Stonewall Inn were led by trans and lesbian women of colour, many of whom were Black. We owe them our support.

• 

•