LGBTQ books to read for Pride Month: Glennon Doyle, Cameron Esposito, more

These recently published titles celebrate, examine and champion gay lives.

By Barbara VanDenburgh | USA TODAY

June is Pride Month, celebrating LGBTQ lives and honoring those who stood up for equality at the 1969 Stonewall riots in Manhattan. These nine recently published books celebrate, examine and champion gay lives:

‘Untamed’ by Glennon Doyle

Dial Press, nonfiction, $28

In this inspirational memoir, motivational speaker Glennon Doyle tells the story of divorcing her husband, coming out to her family and finding love with U.S. world Cup soccer star and now-wife Abby Wambach.

Click for an excerpt from Glennon Doyle’s “Untamed.”

‘Good Boy’ by Jennifer Finney Boylan

Celadon Books, nonfiction, $26.99

A memoir (subtitled “My Life in Seven Dogs”) from The New York Times opinion columnist Jennifer Finney Boylan covering her gender transition through her relationship with seven beloved dogs who were with her at pivotal moments. “Everything I know about love,” Boylan writes, “I learned from dogs.”

‘Save Yourself’ by Cameron Esposito

Grand Central Publishing, nonfiction, $27

Carmen Esposito, the queer standup comic and actress, finds the humor in the fraught, tackling sexuality, gender and equality in this memoir about growing up gay in a devout Catholic home.

‘Something That May Shock and Discredit You’ by Daniel M. Lavery

Atria Books, nonfiction, $26

The co-founder of feminist literary site The Toast and Slate advice columnist — writing here as Daniel Mallory Ortberg — puts his wit and humor on display in a “memoir-adjacent” collection of essays touching on topics as wide-ranging as Lord Byron, the Bible and “House Hunters” in his exploration of self as a transgender man.

“Something That May Shock and Discredit You” by Daniel M. Lavery (writing as Daniel Mallory Ortberg).

‘Real Life’ by Brandon Taylor

Riverhead Books, fiction, $26

Wallace — an extremely introverted gay black graduate student from Alabama with a history of trauma — is a biochemistry student at a Midwestern university that’s rife with racism and homophobia. Everything about him is at odds with his surroundings, and, over the course of an intense weekend, things come to a head.

Click for an excerpt from Brandon Taylor’s “Real Life.”

‘All My Mother’s Lovers’ by Ilana Masad

Dutton, fiction, $27

Maggie’s mother, who was never comfortable with her queer daughter’s sexual orientation, dies in a car crash, leaving behind five sealed envelopes addressed to men the daughter has never heard of. Maggie goes on a road trip to deliver each letter personally — and discover what these men meant to her mother.

Click for an excerpt from Ilana Masad’s ‘All My Mother’s Lovers.”

‘Once a Girl, Always a Boy’ by Jo Ivester

She Writes Press, fiction, $16.95

When Jeremy Ivester was born, his parents thought they had a daughter. But, over the years, it became clear they’d had a son. This intimate portrait (written by his mother) charts Jeremy’s journey from childhood through transition to his emergence as an advocate for the transgender community.

Jo Ivester’s “Once a Girl, Always a Boy.”

‘Under the Rainbow’ by Celia Laskey

Riverhead Books, fiction, $27

A small town in Kansas, labeled the most homophobic town in the United States, is thrown into turmoil when a group of LGBTQ social activists move there on a crusade to change hearts and minds.

Click for an excerpt from Celia Laskey’s “Under the Rainbow.”

‘Shuggie Bain’ by Douglas Stuart

Grove Press, fiction, $27

Sweet, lonely Shuggie grows up in 1980s Scottish public housing in this heartbreaking work of addiction, identity, sexuality and love. The only person who truly loves and accepts him is his mother Agnes, but her all-consuming alcoholism eclipses everything.