10 Moving and Celebratory LGBTQ+ Memoirs 

When Reza Farahan left Iran at just four years old for what was meant to be a short vacation in Los Angeles, he didn’t know California would become his permanent home. While away, revolution erupted, and he found himself as an outsider as a half-Muslim, half-Jewish, gay Persian kid in 1980s America. 

But with his unapologetic personality, Farahan didn’t make it his mission to stand in; rather, he stood out—eventually becoming the fan-favorite of Bravo’s Shahs of Sunset. Moving from his life as a closeted teen to Reality TV royalty, Memoirs of a Gay Shah explores Farahan’s journey to living authentically.

From an early age, Frankie Grande knew he was different. He quickly learned to seek refuge in fantasy—telepathic mutants and girl-boss superheroes. But, behind the sparkle, Grande was battling complex feelings, rooted in addiction, abandonment, and more

Reframing his turbulent story as a hero’s journey, Supergay! is for anyone who’s been made to feel different. Learn how to unapologetically embrace your difference as a superpower!

Life coach Matty Bays offers a modern guide to dating for gay men. Using his own experiences, from swiping right to heartbreaks galore, Bays offers over 60 honest and engaging essays.

If you seem to be constantly falling for the wrong guys, this book is for you! Learn how to not only figure out what you want, but also not to settle for less than what you deserve. 

Greg Bourke never imagined he would be an outspoken gay rights activist. In this courageous account, he shares his journey from living as a closeted Catholic in the South to becoming one of the named plaintiffs in the landmark United States Supreme Court decision that legalized same-sex marriage nationwide.

Once he was dismissed from the Boy Scouts of America, Bourke spearheaded the movement to change the anti-gay BSA membership policies. However, the Archdiocese of Louisville, which staunchly opposes marriage equality, wouldn’t allow him to return as a leader.

Today, Bourke lives in his truth with his husband and two children. But it hasn’t been easy, navigating his faith with his advocacy for gay rights. Appealing to anyone, regardless of ideological affiliation, is an ever-important consideration in advocating for LGBTQ+ communities. 

Carmen Maria Machado’s genre-bending account of queerness and domestic abuse is one of the most groundbreaking memoirs I’ve ever read. Dissecting cultural representations of psychological abuse and the impacts on survivors, In the Dream House is uniquely guided by its own narrative tropes. 

From the haunted house to the bildungsroman, Machado does away with narrative expectations, mirroring her subject matter and subverting the stereotypical notion that lesbian relationships are always utopian. Relying on everything from legal proceedings to Disney villains, this is an absolute must-read. 

The title, Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal?, refers to something that author Jeanette Winterson’s mother said to her when she came out as a lesbian. 

Moving through her painful, closeted path, Winterson shares how she was locked out of her home by a hyper-religious adoptive mother, in a northern England industrial town that refused to understand her.

From mental breakdown to her search for her biological mother, this exploration of queerness deals primarily with a quest for happiness—and that ultimately, to attain it, one must be themselves. 

As much as a memoir, it is a call to action. Trans rights activist Schuyler Bailar offers an illuminating perspective on the conversation of gender identity and inclusion. 

Set in a contemporary United States, where Anti-transgender legislation is being introduced in state governments, and trans people are under attack across sports, school curricula, and much more, He/She/They is incredibly urgent.

Addressing topics such as the lifesaving impact of gender-affirming healthcare and the responsibility to use correct pronouns, this book is for anyone who wants to be a better ally—or for those seeking a guide on their trans journey. 

Specifically geared towards young adults, All Boys Aren’t Blue offers, in a series of essays, journalist and LGBTQ+ activist George M. Johnson’s experiences as a Black queer boy from childhood into college. 

Memories of getting beaten up by bullies at 5, to his first relationships, this is a moving, reassuring reflection for young queer men of color. 

A graphic memoir, this is another book targeting younger audiences. In the words of author Rebecca Burgess, “When I was in school, everyone got to a certain age where they became interested in talking about only one thing: boys, girls, and sex. Me though? I was only interested in comics.”

Growing up, Burgess and the adults around her assumed she would grow into wanting to have sex. But, as she matures in a culture rooted in talking about sex, she learns to come to terms with her asexual identity.

Offering insight into asexuality and asexual relationships, for anyone exploring their identities or wanting to learn more, How to Be Ace is a beautiful journey of self-acceptance.

Samra Habib spent most of their childhood in spaces where they were afraid to be themselves. Growing up in Pakistan, they faced recurrent threats from Islamic extremists, and when their family moved to Canada, racism and bullying. 

This is Habib’s exploration on the page, navigating faith, queer sexuality, love, and much more, in a world that longed to define them.