Let’s celebrate some lesbian literature!
Lesbian writing (whether by author or theme) isn’t new, there are amazing stories that have been around for a very long time – they just haven’t been able to stand in the spotlight until recently.
So, here’s a sample of some books you might want to take a peek at – a few have even been made into movies.
Nevada by Imogen Binnie
“Nevada is the darkly comedic story of Maria Griffiths, a young trans woman living in New York City and trying to stay true to her punk values while working retail. When she finds out her girlfriend has lied to her, the world she thought she’d carefully built for herself begins to unravel, and Maria sets out on a journey that will most certainly change her forever.” From Goodreads.
Fingersmith by Sarah Waters
Sue Trinder is an orphan, left as an infant in the care of Mrs. Sucksby, a “baby farmer,” who raised her with unusual tenderness as if Sue were her own. Mrs. Sucksby’s household, with its fussy babies calmed with doses of gin, also hosts a transient family of petty thieves—fingersmiths—for whom this house in the heart of a mean London slum is home.
The Miseducation of Cameron Post by Emily M. Danforth
The Miseducation of Cameron Post is a coming-of-age teen novel published in 2012. The novel’s protagonist is Cameron Post, a 12-year-old Montana girl who is discovering her own homosexuality. After her parents die in a car crash, she lives with her conservative aunt and her grandmother.
Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe by Fannie Flagg
Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe is a 1987 novel that weaves together the past and the present through the blossoming friendship between Evelyn Couch, a middle-aged housewife, and Ninny Threadgoode, an elderly woman who lives in a nursing home. The book, which was made into a 1991 film, explores themes of family, aging, lesbianism, and the dehumanizing effects of racism. It’s a piece of lesbian literature that will make you both laugh and cry.
The Hours by Michael Cunningham
In 1920s London, Virginia Woolf is fighting against her rebellious spirit as she attempts to make a start on her new novel. A young wife and mother, broiling in a suburb of 1940s Los Angeles, yearns to escape and read her precious copy of Mrs Dalloway. And Clarissa Vaughan steps out of her smart Greenwich village apartment in 1990s New York to buy flowers for a party she is hosting for a dying friend.
Real Queer America: LGBT Stories from Red States by Samantha Allen
transgender reporter’s narrative tour through the surprisingly vibrant queer communities sprouting up in red states, offering a vision of a stronger, more humane America.
Everything Leads to You by Nina LaCour
Emi is a film buff and a true romantic, but her real-life relationships are a mess. She has desperately gone back to the same girl too many times to mention. But then a mysterious letter from a silver screen legend leads Emi to Ava. Ava is unlike anyone Emi has ever met. She has a tumultuous, not-so-glamorous past, and lives an unconventional life. She’s enigmatic…. She’s beautiful. And she is about to expand Emi’s understanding of family, acceptance, and true romance.
Mrs. Dalloway by Virginia Woolf
Mrs. Dalloway (published on 14 May 1925) is a novel that details a day in the life of Clarissa Dalloway, a fictional high-society woman in post–First World War England.
Mrs. Dalloway is essentially plotless; what action there is takes place mainly in the characters’ consciousness. The novel addresses the nature of time in personal experience through multiple interwoven stories, particularly that of Clarissa as she prepares for and hosts a party.
Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit by Jeanette Winterson
This is the story of Jeanette, adopted and brought up by her mother as one of God’s elect. Zealous and passionate, she seems destined for life as a missionary, but then she falls for one of her converts. At sixteen, Jeanette decides to leave the church, her home and her family, for the young woman she loves.
Annie on My Mind by Nancy Garden
This ground-breaking book is the story of two teenage girls whose friendship blossoms into love and who, despite pressures from family and school that threaten their relationship, promise to be true to each other and their feelings. The book has been banned from many school libraries and publicly burned in Kansas City.
Anything else you want to add? Any more lesbian literature you would recommend ? Share in the comments!
