Book Recs: LGBT Graphic Novels (II)

I’ve made a rec list for LGBT graphic novels before (funnily enough, it was on Christmas Eve two years ago) and you can check it out here. But the truth is, you can never have too many of those in your life! Which is why I decided that part two of that particular rec list is long overdue.

So here we are! Ten more LGBT graphic novels, across a bunch of genres and for various target audiences. Hope you will find a new favourite here.

The Magic Fish

Trung Le Nguyen
Goodreads
Rep: Vietnamese-American gay mc, Vietnamese mc, Vietnamese characters, sapphic characters
TW: cannibalism, off page death, on page death, murder, blood, homophobia

Why Should I Read It?

This was our Book of the Month back in September and we always choose great titles for that feature, but we just outdid ourselves with this one. The Magic Fish is breathtaking when it comes to art, but the real beauty of it lies underneath that: in how it uses style and colors and characters designs and clothes to tell the story. And most importantly, it tells a very heartwarming and hopeful story.

Laura Dean Keeps Breaking Up with Me

Mariko Tamaki (writer) & Rosemary Valero-O’Connell (artist)
Goodreads
Rep: half-East Asian lesbian mc, lesbian li, poc gay character, Black gay character, Black sapphic characters, lesbian character
TW: homophobia, cheating, unwanted pregnancy, abortion

Why Should I Read It?

I’m a little bit obsessed with this one. And that’s because it’s just so unabashedly lesbian. They use the word on page, more than once (which, if you’re at all familiar with YA lit, is a huge deal, unfortunately). The lesbians are allowed to be messy and make mistakes, and learn from them in the course of the story, just – be human.

On a Sunbeam

Tillie Walden
Goodreads
Rep: sapphic mc, Black sapphic li, interracial sapphic couple (Black & Latino), nonbinary character, sapphic parents, side sapphic couples

Why Should I Read It?

Okay, let me start with this: there is not a single man in this whole story. Are you already into it? Great. Let’s go even further: almost everyone here is sapphic. Honestly, it’s just a very wholesome story of first loves and longing, and chasing after what your heart calls out to. It’s very tender, and there’s some really cool imagery. I mean, they travel in fish-space ships?

Cosmoknights

Hannah Templer
Goodreads
Rep: sapphic mc, side wlw interracial relationship, side trans character

Why Should I Read It?

My review of this on goodreads is literally just: “i have never felt more gay & more in the mood to smash the patriarchy and eat the rich”. And frankly? Do you need more to want to read something? Because they literally do smash the patriarchy here, and it’s mostly by hands of a very buff butch lesbian. There’s also this very soft teen sapphic romance underlying the whole story, that makes me very excited for the second volume.

Mooncakes

Suzanne Walker (writer) & Wendy Xu (artist)
Goodreads
Rep: bi/pan Chinese-American mc using a hearing-aid, nonbinary Chinese-American li, side interracial sapphic couple

Why Should I Read It?

Witches, werewolves, forest spirits, married sapphics… Does this sound like an ideal book yet? Well, I’m not done! There’s also extremely cute friends to lovers romance. There are demons and evil cults, and still it’s somehow the loveliest thing I have read in ages.

Bloom

Kevin Panetta (writer) & Savanna Ganucheau (artist)
Goodreads
Rep: mlm Greek mc, mlm Samoan-American li, Black mlm side character

Why Should I Read It?

I have a full review of this one over on my blog, but to keep things short: this is a very tender story about growing up and about falling in love for the first time, and how those two intertwine. The main character changes and he does so thanks to the boy he got feelings for, but never because of him or for him. The change is only ever framed as something that happened because Ari is growing into himself, is becoming more sure of himself. And personally I think that’s a great message.

Goldie Vance

Hope Larson (writer) & Brittney Williams (artist)
Goodreads
Rep: mixed race (Black & white) sapphic mc, sapphic li

Why Should I Read It?

Nancy Drew, but make it gay. This is a super fun one (the whole series actually!) and it’s not possible to read it without a giant smile on your face. At its center is a Black sapphic girl who loves (and knows basically everything about) cars and who loves solving mysteries even more. It’s set in the 60s, which gives us those excellent aesthetic and an excuse to introduce a greaser love interest.

Ghosted in L.A.

Sina Grace (writer), Siobhan Keenan (artist) & Cathy Le (colorist)
Goodreads
Rep: bi/pan Jewish mc, gay side characters, sapphic side character

Why Should I Read It?

A ghost story! As in, the main character lives with a bunch of them. There is, of course, an element of mystery to this whole thing, but mainly it’s a story about people who just happen to be dead. It’s very much character driven, and there’s a lot going on with such a vast cast, but it never feels like any of the characters is neglected or only introduced as some cheap treat. They’re all very real and very human. It’s also a story about a college girl, and than alone I also found pretty refreshing.

Stage Dreams

Melanie Gillman
Goodreads
Rep: wlw Latina mc, trans wlw mc

Why Should I Read It?

We all know that The Old West is inherently gay, but this little graphic novel is giving us even more than that. So our main character here is 1) a Latina, 2) a girl, and 3) sapphic. And she falls for a trans girl she kidnaps. I mean! Is there anything in the world you could possibly want to read more?

Crowded

Christopher Sebela (writer), Ted Brandt & Ro Stein (artists)
Goodreads
Rep: poc lesbian mc, bi/pan mc

Why Should I Read It?

If you like Black Mirror, this one is for you! Basically, there’s an app that lets people crowd-found an assassination on someone they hate. And our protagonist – the most chaotic neutral in the world – finds herself with a million dollars for her head, which means there are a lot of people who’ve had enough of her. Enter the most useless lesbian ever, hired to defend her. Add to that a bunch of buff lesbians in the background, just for fun, and you obviously have yourself the hottest comic of the decade. Says I.

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