Rainbow Books
An LGBTQ Booklist for Kids
Picture Books
(Look for these books in the picture book section under the author's last name.)
| Author | Title |
| Brannen, Sarah S. | Uncle Bobby's Wedding |
| Chloë is jealous and sad when her favorite uncle announces that he will be getting married, but as she gets to know Jamie better and becomes involved in planning the wedding, she discovers that she will always be special to Uncle Bobby -- and to Uncle Jamie, too. | |
| Combs, Bobbie | ABC: A Family Alphabet Book |
| Introduces the alphabet with whimsical illustrations portraying gay and lesbian parents and racial diversity. | |
| Haan, Linda de | King & King |
| when the queen insists that the prince get married and take over as king, the search for a suitable mate does not turn out as expected. | |
| Garden, Nancy | Molly's Family |
| While preparing decorations for Open School Night, Molly and several of her classmates draw pictures of their families and discover that family means something different to each of them. | |
| Hoffman, Eric | Best Best Colors/Los Mejores Colores (Available in the Spanish Language collection.) |
| Nate has trouble deciding what his favorite color is, but his two mammas help him realize that he does not have to have a best, best color. | |
| Newman, Lesléa | Heather Has Two Mommies |
| At first Heather feels bad because she has two mommies and no father, but then she realizes that the important thing in a family is that all the people love each other. | |
| Richardson, Justin | And Tango Makes Three |
| At New York city's Central Park zoo, two male penquins fall in love and start a family by taking turns sitting on an abandoned egg until it hatches. (Also in Spanish collection with the title Tres Con Tango) | |
| Setterington, Ken | Mom and Mum are Getting Married |
| When Rosie finds out that her two mothers are planning to get married, she has only one worry -- will she get to be a flower girl? | |
Fiction(Look for these books in the Fiction section by author's last name.) |
|
| Author | Title |
| Fox, Paula | The Eagle Kite |
| Liam's father has AIDS, and his family cannot talk about it until Liam reveals a secret that he has tried to deny ever since he saw his father embracing another man at the beach. | |
| Garden, Nancy | Holly's Secret |
| When she starts middle school, eleven-year-old Holly decides to change her name to Yvette and hide the fact that her two moms are lesbians. | |
| Myracle, Lauren | Luv Ya Bunches |
| Four friends, one who has two moms, navigate the ups and downs of fifth grade. | |
| Polacco, Patricia | In Our Mother's House |
| A Berkeley family of three adopted kids from different cultures experiences the joys and challenges of being raised by two moms. (Picture book format for older readers.) | |
Young Teen Fiction
| Howe, James | Totally Joe |
| As a school assignment, a thirteen-year-old boy writes an alphabiography -- life from A to Z -- and explores issues of friendship, family, school, and the challenges of being a gay teenager. | |
| Naylor, Phyllis Reynolds | Alice on the Outside |
| Alice continues to be friends with a girl who expresses romantic interest in her, even though she does not share her feelings. | |
| Peters, Julie Anne | Between Mom and Jo |
| Fourteen-year-old Nick has a three-legged dog named Lucky 2, some pet fish, and two mothers, whose relationship complicates his entire life as they face prejudice, work problems, alcoholism, cancer, and finally separation. | |
| Sanchez, Alex | So Hard to Say |
| When Xio starts thinking of Frederick as her boyfriend, he must confront his feelings of confusion and face the fear that he might be gay. | |
| Woodson, Jacqueline | The House You Pass on the Way |
| When fourteen-year-old Staggerlee spends a summer with her cousin trout, she begins to question her sexuality. | |
Non-Fiction
(Look for these books by call number in the nonfiction section.)
| Call Number | Author | Title |
| 306.76M334w 2007 | Marcus, Eric | What If Someone I know is Gay? Answers to Questions about Gay and Lesbian People |
| Offers answers to questions young readers might ask about gay people, whether those questions concern a friend, a family member, or themselves. | ||
| 306.85 K958f | Kuklin, Susan | Families |
| Children ages four to fourteen describe their very different families in their own words. | ||
| 306.87 G829z | Greenberg, Keigh E. | Zack's Story: Growing Up With Same-Sex Parents |
| An eleven-year-old boy describes life as part of a family made up of himself, his mother and her lesbian partner. | ||
| 362.1 W727p | Winick, Judd | Pedro and Me: Friendship, Loss and What I Learned |
| A graphic novel about the friendship between Winick, who is straight, and Pedro Zamora, who was gay and HIV positive. | ||
| 612.6 H243i2 | Harris, Robie | It's Perfectly Normal: Changing Bodies, Growing Up, Sex and Sexual Health |
| Provides answers to nearly every conceivable question children may have about sexuality, with the reassurance that "it's perfectly normal." | ||
Want to get your hands on one of these books? Check the Berkeley Public Library catalog to see where you can get a copy!
