A Trans Librarian’s Guide to Trans Books

Thursday, October 29, 2026

Two horrors and one horrible

Last week we had two articles about horror. It must be near Halloween. Plus an article about an old kids' series that may have revealed more about the author than we realized.

Womanhood Is Not a Curse - another take Samantha Josephs' Carrying, in this case in the context of "heteropessimist" novels like Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke. (from Autostraddle)

Diversity in Media is Changing the Horror Genre - An interesting article about movies and books by creators who aren't white, straight, cis men. I especially liked the question "What scares marginalized communities?" It opens all sorts of possibilities for the horror genre. (from Tr!ll)

Hidden in Plain Sight? Gender, Sexuality and the Politics of Representation in Harry Potter - I try to avoid the Harry Potter series and it's author, but I found this article interesting. Who knows what you can actually read into her writing, but this makes some plausible arguments. (from BookClub)

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Thursday, October 22, 2026

Horror & nonfiction books; transphobia's effect on publishing business

News last week included horror books, a scholarly book event, and a look at transphobia in publishing.

The transphobic malaise in modern publishing - This article came to me via a google alert with the title "Is gender-identity theory impacting the publishing industry," and I didn't look at it for the longest while because I assumed it was anti-trans. The "gender-identity theory" framing sounded so "gender critical." But, when I finally clicked on it, I was pleasantly surprised that it was actually an examination of increased transphobia and it's impact on publishing. (from The Michigan Daily)

Scholars launch new books, reflect on transgender rights in Ottawa - Laura Horak (Trans Cinema) and Susan Stryker (Changing Gender) discussed their books at an event for LGBTQ+ History Month. (from The Charlatan)

Horror genre has evolved into space to explore queer identity - This exploration of queer horror includes a look at the difference between horror created by the cis mainstream vs. horror by trans creators. (from Washington Blade)

Grotesque shows us what it means to find the good in being human - a review of Grotesque by Elliott Dunstan and interview with the author. (from Apartment613)

Sunday, October 11, 2026

Your TBR lists may grow with these...

Last week's news included horror recommendations, comics against censorship, poetry about trans becoming, romantasy, and a trans winner of a self-published competition.

Queer & Trans Horror Books to Read This Halloween Season - Samantha Josephs, whose debut novel Carrying is out this month, recommends 3 horror novels to give you a scare this halloween. (from Book Riot)

As the author of ‘Gender Queer,’ I know how important the censorship fight is - Maia Kobabe introduces a series of Comics Against Censorship. (from Xtra*)

Trans Becoming and the Failure of Language - “As trans people, each articulation of who we are is also an articulation of who we will no longer be.” Sanam Sheriff on trans becoming and poetry. Their debut poetry collection, Hum, came out earlier this month. (from Literary Hub)

Self-Published Science Fiction Competition Won by Nikki Null - Trans author Nikki Null wins The Self-Published Science Fiction Competition for her novel Our Simulated Selves. (from File 770)

Why the World Needs More Queer and Trans Romantasy Stories - Thomas J. West III discusses the power of queer romantasy. (from Omnivorous)