Book Review: Queer- The Ultimate LGBT Guide for Teens by Kathy Belge and Marke Bieschke
My Big Gay Revelation
For me, the signs were probably there from the start. I was the kind of little
kid who played dress-up in his mom’s clothes, ran around singing show tunes
at the top of his voice, and pretend-flirted with other boys. (My parents even
have pictures of me kissing one of my boy cousins on the lips when we were
in diapers!) In grade school, I also fooled around with some other boys in my
neighborhood and from my school. But I didn’t really think about it in terms
of whether I was gay or straight or whatever. I knew lots of boys who did
stuff like this, and it didn’t seem like a big deal.
It wasn’t until around sixth grade, when I started developing deep crushes on
other boys, that I started thinking I might be a little different. But I still
couldn’t put my finger on it. I had never even heard the word gay until some
older boys from another school tried to insult me by calling me that. I did a
little research in the library to find out more and discovered a whole history
of people who not only had sex with people of the same gender but had
passionate romantic relationships as well. In fact, there was an entire
community of people who felt the same way I did; it was a delicious
wonderland of queerness! I realized it was OK to like other boys in “that
way,” and even though it took a little while to find other boys who liked me
back, I knew that I wasn’t “abnormal” or “weird”—just a little bit different.
Written especially for GLBTQI (gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, questioning/queer, and intersex- in case you didn’t know) teens, Queer is a humorous and straightforward guide to life for tweens and teens looking for answers to questions that they may not feel comfortable asking another adult, or questions that they may not have someone there to answer. Written by Kathy Belge and Marke Bieschke, who share their own personal stories throughout the book, it’s chapters covers whether you’re GLBTQ, coming out to family and friends, finding other GLBTQ teens, and dealing with the hate and phobia that exists still in society, even with the strides in the political sphere. It also goes into dating, relationship, and sex on the GLBTQ scale as well, which is both informative and thought provoking- the authors discuss the difference between sex and love, and that they don’t have to go together, as well as the importance of being safe with sex if you choose to go that route with your partner.
Queer does not shy away from the ups and downs of life: it covers abusive relationships and what signs to look for, how to find positive counselors to help you cope with things in their life, and stresses getting involved in the GLBTQ community. It talks about steps to take if you face physical assault (third most likely reason for physical attacks after race and religion), how to approach a crush, how to deal with rejection, and knowing your rights as a GLBTQ teen. Also covered are STIs and HIV/AIDS, religion, and has an excellent resources section in the back with websites and books for further investigation on the topic.
Queer is a very comprehensive and excellent addition to any collection. It was also on the 2012 Rainbow Book List, sponsored by the American Library Association’s Social Responsibilities Round Table and the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Round Table. I know that more conservative areas might think that the material it covers can be too much, but I cannot stress how much this information is needed by GLBTQI teens, and how much they may not get that information. It’s a positive and informative view on the subject, without the hype or negative connotations that can seep into books on the subject, and that is extremely hard to find for this type of book. There should be more books like this out there, so that teens aren’t scrambling to find this information, and getting misinformation instead. However, getting Queer into their hands is a start.
For more information on GLBTQ issues, check out our previous posts:
You want to put WHAT in my YA?
Taking a Stand for What You Believe In
Steph’s Top 10 GLBTQ Titles
For more information on GLBTQ issues, check out our previous posts:
You want to put WHAT in my YA?
Taking a Stand for What You Believe In
Steph’s Top 10 GLBTQ Titles
Filed under: Book Reviews, GLBTQ, Kathy Belge, Marke Bieschke, Teen Issues, Zest Books
About Karen Jensen, MLS
Karen Jensen has been a Teen Services Librarian for almost 30 years. She created TLT in 2011 and is the co-editor of The Whole Library Handbook: Teen Services with Heather Booth (ALA Editions, 2014).
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