133 amazing books to read during Pride month and beyond

June 20, 2021

Row of three book covers: ''I Can't Date Jesus'' by Michael Arceneaux, ''Would You Rather?'' by Katie Heaney, ''Confessions of the Fox'' by Jordy Rosenberg

From fiction to memoirs to young adult to romance — there's something for everyone in this list of 39 LGBTQ+ books the BuzzFeed Books editors highly recommend.

More for your TBR list

Row of four books against a background with illustrated rainbows. (Books from left to right: Title cut off, illustration of a vampire with bloody mouth and choker necklace; ''Sidelined''; ''It Ends In Fire''; title and book cover image cut off)

28 New LGBTQ+ Young Adult Novels That'll Add Sunshine To Your Summer

Three book covers: ''Honey Girl'' by Morgan Rogers, ''Final Draft'' by Riley Redgate, ''The Song of Achilles'' by Madeline Miller

66 LGBTQ+ Paperbacks Organized By Spine Color That Make Excellent Reads And Bookshelf Rainbows

Fun & quizzes

Photo of rolling hills. Text overlay reads ''To die would be an awfully big adventure.''

48 Sentences From Literature That Prove That Authors Are Magicians With Words

Two screengrabs: On left, George Costanza looks suspicious; on right he continues to watch from behind an ajar door. Text overlay reads, ''Nick Carraway in chapter 1: You shouldn't judge people. Nick Carraway for the rest of the novel:''

37 Absolutely Hilarious Tweets From The SparkNotes Twitter Account

Read this if: You love experimental narratives

''Whatever Happened To Interracial Love?'' standing upright in front of brick wall

Credit: florence_blvd_lfl

Whatever Happened to Interracial Love? by Kathleen Collins

Kathleen Collins wasn't on my radar until very recently, which is a shame because, oh man, what a voice. She was the first Black woman to write and direct a feature film (Losing Ground in 1982) but she died in 1988 at 46 years old. Whatever Happened to Interracial Love? is a collection of her never-published short stories of Black women in the '60s and '70s, and they are exactly what I love about the form.

Collins wrote with the courage to include only precisely what she felt necessary to get her meaning (whether that's a message or a mood or a cadence) across, and trusted the reader to get it. It helps that she does this with assurance, masterfully playing with structure and format: Her use of repetition, lyricism, fragmented dialogue, stage direction, and stream of consciousness is an effective reminder that sometimes plot just distracts you from the art underneath it. It's a powerful exploration of race and gender, love and loss, ambition and disappointment. Get your copy. —Arianna Rebolini

(A version of this review was previously published in Arianna's newsletter, Reading Habits.)

BuzzFeed Book Club +

The Atmospherians Giveaway

The BuzzFeed Book Club announced its July pick, and it's a good one: The Atmospherians by Alex McElroy, a morbidly funny satire about a cult to rehabilitate bad men. (Check out the first chapter here.)

In the slightly off-kilter universe of the novel, Sasha Marcus, founder of a beloved women's wellness brand, is dealing with the aftermath of a dark scandal: After one of her trolls livestreams his suicide and blames her for it, she becomes the subject of op-eds and death threats, while crowds of angry men station themselves outside of her apartment. She's lost her job, friends, followers, and all hope, until her eccentric childhood friend Dyson shows up with a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity: Together, they're going to start a cult. It's a brilliant send-up of a society run ragged by disingenuous influencers, toxic masculinity, commodified self-care, weaponized positivity, and performative "wokeness."

To celebrate, we're collaborating with publisher Atria Books and Libro.fm to give away ten signed copies and five free audiobooks — and, for one grand prize winner, a swag bag with book cover–themed earrings.

Want to add a ~provocative~ tote bag from the fictional cult to your summer look? Eager for a new signed book on your shelf? Click the green button below to enter your email for a chance to win!

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