Three LGBTQIAP+ middle grade books I love (November 2023)

First of all: Representation matters. I think it’s very important for kids to read books where they can see themselves, no matter what age. I’m really happy there are now more middle grade books with more diversity around, and I’ll hopefully get around to read more at some point. That being said, in this blog post I will recommend three English language middlegrade books with LGBTQIAP+ representation. (There definitivle exist some Norwegian ones, but there could have been more).

Too Bright to See, by Kyle Lukoff

This books tells the story of Bug, a kid who lives in a haunted house, and tries to understand a message a ghost is trying to send. Even though it may sound a bit scary, it wasn’t scary at all, but really cute. I don’t really want to give too much away, as it could spoil the reading experience.

Alice Austen Lived Here, by Alex Gino

We meet Sam, who is very in touch with their own queer identity. They’re nonbinary, and their best friend, TJ, is nonbinary too. Sam’s family accepts them for who they are, they still need to do chores, do their homework, and try not to antagonize their teachers too much. Showing the teacher respect can be hard, especially when it comes to their hostory teacher. Their teacher seems to believe that only Dead Straight Cis White Men are responsible for history. So when Sam’s home borough of Staten Island opens up a contest for a new statue, Sam finds the perfect non-DSCWM subject: photographer Alice Austen, whose house has been turned into a museum, and who lived with a female partner for decades. It doesn’t take long before the project becomes more than just winning the contest. Sam discovers a rich queer history, one that they’re a part of: A queer history that no longer needs to be quiet, as long as there are kids like Sam and TJ to stand up for it.

This is truly a feel good read, with lots of diversity.

The Witch Boy, by Molly Knox Ostertag

Aster is 13 years old, and in his family, all the girls are raised to be witches, while boys grow up to be shapeshifters. If you dare to cross that line, you will be exiled. Unfortunately for Aster, he still hasn’t shifted. To top that off, he’s really fascinated by witchery. When something is threatening Aster’s family, he knows he can help – by using witchcraft. By the help by a new, and very non-magical friend, he is encouraged to practise his skills, and must find the courage to save his family.

This is a a sweet graphic novel, and the first in a series. I still haven’t gotten around to read more that the first.

A layout with three pictures. The picture in the middle show some rainbow flags on a table, the photo to the left an e-reader, a lit candle, and a cup of coffee, and the picture to the right a book, and parts of a doughnut.
Photo: Mittens and Sunglasses © 2023

Graphic Novel Review: Paper Planes, by Jennie Wood (writer), Dozerdraws (artist), and Micah Myers (lettering)

I was given this digital copy of «Paper Planes», by Jennie Wood (writer), Dozerdraws (artist), and Micah Myers (lettering), from NetGalley and the publisher for an honest review.

A tablet with the cover picture of Paper Plans is laying flat on a table with a white table cloth. Over it is a grey shawl, and over at the right corner is a paper plane. To the left is a white candle on a silver candle stand.
Photo: Mittens and Sunglasses © 2023

Leighton and Dylan are best friends, and spend all their time together. After an incident, they have to spend the summer at a camp for troubled youth, and they both need to get a positive evaluation at the end not to be sent to an «alternative high school». They both try to figure out who they really are, and they need to explore their friendship.

This was such a lovely story to read. I loved the illustrations, and how Dozerdraws has used different colouring to display different aspects of time. I also enjoyed the diversity of characters, and I can mention that Dylan is non-binary, and Leighton is ace.

This was my second read for the Trans Rights Readathon. The graphic novel is due to be published 16 May 2023.

Pansexual Visibility Day 2022

24 May is Pansexual Day of Visibility! 💖💛💙 Here are some books I own that has a pansexual main character (I haven’t read them all yet, though). 📚

📖 Crownchasers, by Rebecca Coffindaffer
📖 Dead Space, by Kali Wallace
📖 Once & Future, by Amy Rose Capetta and Cori McCarthy
📖 The Library of the Unwritten, by A. J. Hackwith
📖 The Witch’s Heart, by Genevieve Gornichec
📖 In the Ravebous Dark, by A. M. Stricland

A row of books on top of grey knitwear. You can see the pansexual pride flag under them. To the right a green peace lily plant.
Photo: Mittens and Sunglasses © 2022

London, April 2022: Tuesday the 12th

Tuesday greeted me with sunshine! From experience, sunny April spring days with +19⁰C isn’t exactly common in London. And I must say, it was really pleasant.


Brick buildings bathed in sun.
Sunny hotel room view
Photo: Mittens and Sunglasses © 2022

A woman with purple hair sitting in the window. In the background you can see brick buildings.
Me at the hotel
Photo: Mittens and Sunglasses © 2022

My first stop was one of my favourite coffee shops in London, Origins. They serve high quality coffee, of a light roast. I had a pour over, i.e. made with a V60. Sitting inside, looking out the window and reading was really nice.


A book on a bench that is a table, the book to the left. To the right a carafle of coffee and a cup of coffee.
Coffee at Origins
Photo: Mittens and Sunglasses © 2022

After having had some coffee, I picked up a light breakfast at a grocery shop, that I had outside on a bench at Bloomsbury. It was nice and relaxing, and a nice way to get ready for some book shopping. The bookshops I was planning on visiting were all close by.


A street with flowering trees
Spring in London
Photo: Mittens and Sunglasses © 2022

The first bookshop to visit was Skoob Books, where I spent quite a bit of time. I love second hand books, and if you’re lucky you might find some really nice books. Not only did I end up buying two books that look pretty much brand new, but I also found some cheap postcards I’m planning on using for postcrossing. Score!


A sign with "Skoob" standing out from the wall.
Skoob Books
Photo: Mittens and Sunglasses © 2022

Next bookshop on my list was Gays the Word, an LGBTQ+ bookshop. It was quite small, and the selection was quite good, but they didn’t have the books I was looking for. I did end up buying some other books, though, as well as a couple of postcards.


A bookshop front, you can see books in the window. The sign above it has pink triangles pointing down, one at each side of the text.
Gays the World
Photo: Mittens and Sunglasses © 2022

I had just one more bookshop to browse before I wanted to head back to the hotel: Judd Books. This bookshop unfortunately came across as a bit chaotic to me. Also it was hard to navigate around, as there wasn’t much room for movement. I didn’t end up buying anything there, nor did I spend much time. When I left the shop, I headed back to the hotel for a rest.


A book shop front, with boxes of books outside. A couple of people can be seen browsing the boxes.
Judd Books
Photo: Mittens and Sunglasses © 2022

In the afternoon/evening I met up with @lovedreadingthis and @always_need_more_books, bookstagrammers I’ve been following for a long time on Instagram. It was really nice to meet them, and having a wonderful conversation of books and more. We had a meal at Art Yard Bar & Kitchen, which turned out to be more of a hotel restaurant than any of us expected, I think, but that’s OK. The vegan burger I had, though, wasn’t great. A bit bland and dense. The chips were lovely, though, so I kind of wish I just had chips.


A plate with a burger on a bun half, the other bun half beside it. Also a bowl of chips on it. Behind it are glasses of water.
Vegan burger at Art Yard Bar & Kitchen
Photo: Mittens and Sunglasses © 2022

After dinner I went back to the hotel. I was shattered tired, and just wanted to relax and get some blogging done. I stopped at Tesco on my way, though, and got some sweets and a strawberry beer that actually tasted OK. It was nice to have a quiet night, and very much needed. I think I pretty much passed out when my head hit the pillow.