It’s Mental Health Awareness Week (and Month), which is incredibly important and personal to me. And so, I have read two thirds of these stories with people who live with one form of mental illness or another, while the rest are books I want to read.
May 5th is Red Dress Day, which brings awareness to Missing and/or Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls, and Two Spirit peoples.
These books discuss the violence and problems Indigenous people face, in different ways. Not all of these books are queer, but some of them are. Please check TW before reading.
Or so help me! (I will want to read it.)
Angels, demons, vampires, werewolves, mermaids and eldritch horrors. There are orcs, dinosaur shifters, fae with benefits, and dragons too. And then there’s whatever Wyn the Soul Eater is, along with some gargoyles. Honestly, you’re just going to have to explore for yourself.
Lesbian Visibility Week is here, and I have a collection of sapphic books to keep you going. There are many ways to be a lesbian and not one label fits all, so please keep that in mind.
It’s Autism Acceptance Month! We are past the time of awareness, it’s time for acceptance. There have been so many great posts and book recommendations, it makes me so happy to see people sharing their favorite reads.
These are a good mix of books I want to read, and have read.
Yesterday was International Asexuality Day, but ace books are good to read all year round. Asexual means a person doesn’t feel sexual feelings or attraction to others, but this is a spectrum and can vary widely from person to person. Note that attraction does not equal romance, and asexual is not the same as aromantic. Some people are sex repulsed, some are not. Some people are sex positive, some are not.
Demisexuality falls under the asexual umbrella, and means a person doesn’t feel attraction until developing a strong connection with a person. Two of my books, Phantom and Rook, and Matsdotter and Adrastus, have demisexual mains.
There are many different shades of Ace, and many different types of stories just waiting for you to read.
In addition to what I read in March, here are the trans books (trans authors or trans characters) I’ve read since the last TDOV. Each one is special to me for different reasons, and I hope to find more favorites in this upcoming year.
And yes, I included my own book because I had to read and listen to it all for audiobook production. Which if you didn’t know, Paige Reisenfeld is donating all her proceeds from this title to the Human Rights Campaign. So check it out on Audible!
I really wanted to read more for the Trans Rights Readathon, and in general during March. But I’ve been really looking forward to Love After the End, and Galaxy The Prettiest Star, and both were well worth the wait.
Axton Landing and St Lawrence Ripples are local books, the first one is a historical fiction based on loggers in the mid 1800s, and the second one is a collection of local (mostly) true stories. I was surprised at how profound Axton Landing was, it touched a lot on the Underground Railroad, women’s suffrage, slavery, workers rights, and many other issues plaguing the time.
I’m part of a itch.io bundle! Over 40 authors and illustrators have come together to offer their work at a discounted price for the upcoming Trans Rights Readathon.
The bundle is available from March 17th to March 31st, and we’ve smashed through our first three goals!
This is my first time being part of an itch.io, and I’ve only recently started selling my ebooks on there. So far the experience is good, people seem to be loving the indie aspect of it and the ability to tip when making purchases. Purchases that are direct, meaning the files that you pay for are *yours.*
The current goal has been bumped up to $12,000, and right now we’re about to hit 8k. My monthly sales from itch.io are going to Advocates for Trans Equality.
The Trans Rights Readathon is an annual call to action, during which people read trans books and support their trans community in other ways.
Some trans masculine masterpieces! I’ve got a few of these already and am hoping to smash them out soon. What’re you reading for the Trans Rights Readathon?
It’s Women’s History Month, and I’m over here collecting trans femme gems like it’s my job. I have The Dawnhounds, and I’m looking forward to checking out more of these.
Neshama Publishing 