By Tamsin
On October 18, 2020, the Boston Bi Women’s Network welcomed 27 friends from around the United States and Europe to discuss our favorite books. The Book Swap Brunch is an annual tradition that long-standing community members Ellyn and Steph have been hosting for 20 years. While this year’s brunch was a bit different, since we could not meet in person, we nevertheless had an excellent discussion about all kinds of books and resources we’ve been enjoying this year. Most of our books—which ranged from nonfiction to novels to poetry—featured authors and characters of color, as well as LGBTQ+ authors and characters. A couple of books contained work by community members, including a short story in the fiction anthology duo Her Magical Pet and His Magical Pet (proceeds of which go to support OutRight Action International), and Chronic Illness Truths, a new anthology edited by Julie Morgenlender. We thought we’d share our list below. What have you been reading? Feel free to contact us about your favorite books, especially ones with queer themes, and maybe we’ll feature it in the next issue! And, as long as our brunches are virtual, feel free to join us, wherever you are! You can find a list of events in the calendar at the back of this issue.
| Title | Author | Genre(s) | Queer Characters/Authors? | Characters/Authors of Color? |
| Tomboyland | Melissa Faliveno | Essay | Yes | |
| The Map of Salt and Stars | Zeyn Joukhadar | Fiction | Yes, Arab | |
| Red to the Bone | Jacqueline Woodson | Fiction | Yes, Black | |
| An Absolutely Remarkable Thing | Hank Green | Fiction | Yes | |
| A Beautifully Foolish Endeavor | Hank Green | Fiction | Yes | |
| Their Eyes Were Watching God | Zora Neale Hurston | Fiction | Yes, Black | |
| The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo | Taylor Jenkins Reid | Fiction | Yes | |
| Life After Life | Kate Atkinson | Fiction | ||
| The Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage | Haruki Murakami | Fiction | No | Yes, Japanese |
| Her Magical Pet: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08L9JS13J and His Magical Pet https://www.amazon.com/His-Magical-Pet-Tate-Hallaway-ebook/dp/B08L8JCT3C | Several, including Deb! (under a pen name) | Fiction anthology | Yes | Yes |
| She’s Gone Santa Fe | Maida Tilden | Fiction, historical | Yes | Yes, Indigenous |
| Haben | Haben Girma | Memoir | Yes, Black | |
| Save Yourself | Cameron Esposito | Memoir | Yes | Yes, Black |
| Chronic Illness Truths | Edited by very own Julie Morgenlender! | Memoir anthology | Yes | Yes |
| The Art of Gathering: How We Meet and Why it Matters | Priya Parker | Nonfiction | ||
| The Mayo Clinic Diabetes Diet | Weight Loss Experts at Mayo Clinic | Nonfiction, Health | ||
| Stamped from the Beginning | Ibram X. Kendi | Nonfiction, History | Yes, Black | |
| Come as You Are: The Surprising New Science That Will Transform Your Sex Life | Emily Nagoski, Ph.D | Nonfiction, Sex | Queer inclusive | |
| If They Come for Us | Fatimah Asghar | Poetry | Yes, Pakistan-Kashmiri-American | |
| Felix Ever After | Kacen Callendar | YA Fiction | Yes | Yes, Black |
| Little and Lion | Brandy Colbert | YA Fiction | Yes | Yes, Black |
| Daughter of Smoke & Bone | Laini Taylor | YA Fiction, Fantasy | Yes | |
| ALL OUT: The No-Longer-Secret Stories of Queer Teens Throughout the Ages | Saundra Mitchell | YA Historical Fiction | Yes | Yes |