A lesbian poet navigates her way through the 70s and 80s downtown punk scene of Manhattan while exploring her artistry and sexuality with curiosity and vigor. Read it for the laughs, poignancy, and an unabashed look at a young artist trying to make sense of her world through poetic language.

Many readers probably already know Alexander Chee’s novels, but it’s this collection of personal essays that will take you on a real trip. There are drag nights in San Francisco, fancy catering gigs in NYC, grad school in Iowa—and gut-punch emotions scattered throughout the journey.

Meet your authors: Tom Rasmussen, the non-binary narrator of this delightful story, and Crystal Rasmussen, their fabulous drag queen alter-ego who always emerges for the drama. This novel carries a feel-good rom-com vibe, with a heaping side of raunch.

This memoir is a delicate account of author Meredith Talusan’s coming out and transition while living with albinism. Beginning in her home country of 80s-era Philippines, Talusan goes on to attend Harvard as an undergrad and heads to Thailand in 2002 for reassignment surgery. It’s one hell of a life story that will take readers around the world and back.

Queer comics artist Walter Scott has been drawing Wendy, his millennial art party girl, in publications like The New Yorker, Hazlitt, and The Best American Comics anthology for years. In his latest, Wendy’s in grad school and getting serious about her art. Gender identity, sex work, and polyamory are all themes you can expect to find in this hilarious adventure.

In this deeply emotional and moving collection of essays, Alex DiFrancesco writes candidly about their trans identity and how it relates to their mental health, chosen family, spirituality, and more.

In their new novel, author Akwaeke Emezi takes what would typically be a devastating premise—the death of a young queer Nigerian boy in the 90s—and turns it into a story that celebrates his life via his loved ones and his community.

This graphic novel is both dystopian and goofy, taking place in a world where technology rules all. At the heart of this oddball story is a woman who goes searching for her missing girlfriend after one of Earth’s regular “updates.” A highly imaginative love story.

Enter the wild world of Samantha Irby’s psyche in her latest collection of comedic personal essays. Topics include the beginnings of her friendship with Broad City’s Abbi Jacobson, several things to do instead of having sex (A real chapter title: “Lesbian Bed Death”), and hypothetical 911 calls for life’s more unique emergencies.

Travel back to freshman year with the help of this graphic novel created from a popular webcomic of the same name. It follows Bitty, a former figure skater-turned-college hockey player, who falls in love with his team captain.

Alison Bechdel’s graphic memoir, previously staged as a Broadway musical, revisits her life growing up in her family’s funeral home business run by her closeted father. Alongside Bechdel’s memories of her often-rocky life at home, she explores her own sexuality, leading to her eventual coming out to her dad.

David is an American living in 1950s Paris when he finds himself torn between his American fiancee and a budding relationship with a man named Giovanni. Ahead of its time, Baldwin’s masterful novel contemplates queer identity, home, and manhood through a character haunted by his own desires.

Even if you’ve already watched Luca Guadagnino’s lush adaptation of this queer coming-of-age story, you’ll be surprised by the depth added by the original source material, narrated by Elio. Find a shady spot for reading and prepare yourself for a sensory vacation to the Italian countryside.

Written in the form of a letter from a young man to his mother who cannot read, Ocean Vuong’s heartbreaking first novel covers themes of masculinity, belonging, and the immigrant experience. Read it to soak up Vuong’s poetic wisdom—just be sure to keep tissues close by.