We all have books that we love to read over & over again. Or sometimes we just think about them all the time and that’s enough, too. Sometimes they simply occupy a space in our brain (and heart). It’s about craft, yes, but most of all it’s about the feelings those books evoke in us. The way they make us feel safe & loved, & cherished. And at times maybe a lot a little bit heartbroken.
So that’s what I’m offering you today. Ten books that I’ve been feeling lowkey insane about for months, and sometimes even years. A lot of books about love.
And hey, a lot of those titles are available on Scribd, so if you want to check out that service but don’t have an account yet, use my invite code to get 2 months for free! (This also gives me one free month.)
Crush
Richard Siken
Goodreads
Rep: poetry, gay author
Why Should I Read It?
If you’ve been here for longer than a week or just know me at all, this one isn’t a surprise. There was that year when I was reading Crush every month, there are two of his quotes tattooed on my body, there’s a playlist made specifically for reading this poetry collection… It truly did change my brain chemistry, and nothing feels like home the way Crush does.
Felicity
Mary Oliver
Goodreads
Rep: poetry, lesbian author
Why Should I Read It?
This would have been any of Mary’s collection actually, because her writing always does the same things to my heart. Namely, makes it bigger & warmer, & more ready to see the beauty in the world. (Yes, I also have a Mary Oliver tattoo, but funnily it’s not from a poem from this collection.)
Feed
Tommy Pico
Goodreads
Rep: poetry, gay indigenous author (Kumeyaay Nation)
Why Should I Read It?
Again, I read four of Pico’s collections and any of them could have been featured here. It’s the kind of poetry that makes you feel like you’re talking with your best friend in the middle of the night, in a blanket fort. And even when you’re listing all the ugly things happening in the world, you’re still holding their hand and it’s all good.
The Faggots and Their Friends Between Revolutions
Larry Mitchell & Ned Asta
Goodreads
Why Should I Read It?
This is basically a nonfiction book, a manifesto of sort, but you could as well describe it as a fairy tale. The one quote that I feel describes the vibe of this book the best is this: “There still exists a faint memory of the past when the faggots and their friends were free. The memory lives in the faggots’ bones. The memory appears at night when the bones are quietest.“
All This Could Be Different
Sarah Thankam Mathews
Goodreads
Rep: Indian lesbian mc, Black genderfluid lesbian polyam character, lesbian li, sapphic side characters
TW: past child sexual abuse, transphobia, fatphobia, drugs & alcohol addictions
Why Should I Read It?
This is a very warm book, in the sense that its characters are allowed to be messy, unlikable at times even. Life is like that, isn’t it. But still, the book tells you that even when you make mistakes or are lost or stuck, your loved ones will help you see that it’s worth it to save yourself. And life is like that, too, isn’t it.
The Thirty Names of Night
Zeyn Joukhadar
Goodreads
Rep: Syrian American transmasc gay mc, Syrian American gay li, Syrian sapphic mc, Syrian trans li, Syrian sapphic li, Black nonbinary character
TW: islamophobia, homophobia, transphobia, violence, death, blood
Why Should I Read It?
I recommend this book over & over, I’m aware. But if we’re talking about books that stay with you, this is the one! I even remember what I was doing, while listening to the audiobook version of it. The most beautiful book about love and grief, and tenderness.
Devotion
Hannah Kent
Goodreads
Rep: lesbian mc & li
Why Should I Read It?
I don’t understand how a book literally about death, can be this soft and can make you feel this safe. And yet! When I compare this book to Mary Oliver’s poetry, this is what I mean: “Thea, if love were a thing, it would be the sinew of a hand stretched in anticipation of grasping. See, my hands, they reach for you. My heart is a hand reaching.” and Oliver’s: “I don’t want to lose a single thread / from the intricate brocade of this happiness. / I want to remember everything. / Which is why I am lying awake, sleepy / but not sleepy enough to give it up. / Just now, a moment from years ago: / the early morning light, the deft, sweet / gesture of your hand / reaching for me.”
Midnighter and Apollo
Steve Orlando, Fernando Blanco & Romulo Fajardo Jr.
Goodreads
Rep: gay mcs
Why Should I Read It?
Very different from all the previous ones. A superhero comic book! But listen, listen! It’s so unapologetically gay! Literally the whole thing is about how much Midnighter and Apollo love each other. That’s the plot! I’m gonna give you two quotes to illustrate just what I mean: “No world exists where someone could hurt Apollo and escape me” and “Did you think there was anywhere I wouldn’t hear [Midnighter’s] voice?”.
Icarus
K. Ancrum
Goodreads
Rep: achillean mc with Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, achillean intersex li, achillean side character
TW: child abuse, cancer, past off page death, drug addiction, violence
Why Should I Read It?
You didn’t think I could make a list about comfort reads without including something by Kayla, did you? And Icarus might be her best one yet! It’s tender, it’s delicate, it’s a lover’s hand softly stroking your cheek. Siken was clearly talking about this book when he said “you feel your heart taking root in your body“.
The Kingdoms
Natasha Pulley
Goodreads
Rep: half-Chinese gay mc, half-Spanish gay mc
TW: rape, murder, blood, violence, guns
Why Should I Read It?
Maybe the most groundbreaking on this list, in terms of the plot. Gay love literally changing the world, the history? Why not! I read this book in one sitting almost three years ago, and I haven’t stopped thinking about it since. It sure does make you believe in true love and soulmates.
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