BOOKS FOR ADULTS WITH LGBT PARENTS

FOR PEOPLE WITH LGBT PARENTS COLAGE Program Information (PDF) Books for Children with LGBT Parents Books for Teens and Young Adults with LGBT Parents Books for Adults with LGBT Parents Media Featuring Children and Adults with LGBT Parents Transgender Family Resources Tips for Making Classrooms Safer Famous COLAGErs Health Professionals Resource

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For and about Adult Children

The Assault of Laughter

A moving memoir by an adult daughter of a lesbian mother.

Melissa Hart. ISBN 1-59092-149-6.

Beloved Daughter*

A wonderful collection of letters written by Asian immigrants about their queer family member.                    

The Family Letter Project. MAPLBN. 1999

The Boy with the Thorn in his Side

Keith Fleming's story of how his gay uncle, the writer Edmund White, saved his life, when at sixteen, Fleming was commited to mental institute.   A good memoir about adolescence, and one boy's relationship with his uncle.

K. Fleming. Morrow,William & Co. 2000

Different Mothers: Sons and Daughters of Lesbians Talk About Their Lives*

L. Rafkin (Ed.). Cleis Press, San Francisco. 1990

Donorboy

A comic novel sharing the story of Rosalind who develops a relationship with her sperm donor after the death of her lesbian moms.

B. Halpin, Villard, New York, 2004 .

Families Like Mine: Children of Gay Parents Tell It Like It Is.

Based on eight years of activism, combined with interviews with more than fifty sons and daughters, this book provides a realistic and powerful account of the true experiences of adult children of LGBT parents.

Abigail Garner, 2004. Harper Collins.

Friends and Family; True Stories of America's Straight Allies

Stories told by children, parents, and friends alike about how they advocate for queer people.

D. Woog. Alyson Books. New York, NY. 1999.

Growing Up in a Lesbian Family

An academic look at children raised by lesbians, sometimes in comparison with children in straight households.

S. Golombok ,   F.   Tasker.   Gilford Press, New York   NY . 1997

Janet, My mother and Me

A memoir by New Yorker writer William Murray about growing up in the 1940's and 50's with his mother, Natalia Danesi Murray, and her partner Janet Flanner.

W. Murray, Simon and Schuster. 2000

Nobody's Children: Orphans of the HIV Epidemic

This book incorporates statistics and facts with the personal experiences of children whose lives have been affected by the HIV epidemic.

S. Dansky. Harrington Park Press, Binghamton, NY. 1997

Other Side of the Closet:   The Coming-Out Crisis for Straight Spouses and Families

Based on five years of research, this book explores major issues that arise for straight spouses when their wives or husbands come out.

A. Pierce-Buxton. John Wiley & Sons, New York. 1994

Out of the Closet into Our Hearts: Celebrating our Gay/Lesbian Family Members

Stories and poems written by families of gay and lesbians.   Includes interesting accounts from children as well as a diversity of other family members

L. Siegel, N. Olson, Leyland Publications, San Francisco, CA. 2001.

Out of the Ordinary:
Essays on Growing Up with Gay, Lesbian, and Transgender Parents.

A truly unique anthology, a groundbreaking collection of essays by the grown children of lesbian, gay, and transgender parents.

Edited by Noelle Howey and Ellen Samuels . 2000 St. Martin's Press.

Trans Forming Families: Real Stories About Transgendered Loved Ones

Thirty one stories by spouses, parents, children, and friends exploring the journey, struggle, and delight of having a transgendered loved one.

M. Boenke. Waterford Press. 1999

A Woman Like That

A collection of coming out stories by popular lesbian and bisexual authors.   Some tell the story of losing custody of children and others about being second generation.

Ed. J. Larkin. Perennial harper Collins, New York, NY. 2000

50 Ways to Support Gay and Lesbian Equality.

A collection of essays including several by youth and adult with LGBT parents about affecting social change for the LGBT community.

Meredith Maran. Inner Ocean Publishing, 2005.

For and/or about Parents

Detonating the Nuclear Family

Lesbians talk about reconstructing the nuclear family and finding new ways to parent, love, care for and relate to one another.

J. Brosnan. Scarlet Press. 1996

Endangered Species

A Novel about a gay man who becomes afraid that his family is "on the brink of extinction."   So he begins a search to find a child.

L. Bayard. Alyson Publications. 2001

The Kid: What happened After Me and My Boyfriend Decided to Get Pregnant

This is a hilarious account of how Dan Savage and his partner adopted their son.

D. Savage. Penguin Group. 2000.

A Legal Guide For Lesbian and Gay Couples, 10th Edition

An excellent resource for all lesbian and gay couples: includes information on custody, parent's and partner's rights, and domestic partner benefits.

H. Curry & D. Clifford. Nolo Press, Berkeley. 1999.

Lesbian Motherhood in Europe

Discusses the evolving place of the lesbian family. Mothers talk about how to conceive a child; the effects of children on lesbian relationships; lesbian identity; friends, family and colleagues; relationships with the father; role models; and lesbian motherhood as a political act.

K. Griffin (ed) L. Mulholland (ed). Continuum International Publishing Group Inc. 1997

Lesbian Parenting: Living with Pride and Prejudice

An anthology that covers insemination, adoption, raising children, and the law. Has both personal and theoretical perspectives.

K. Arnup. Genergy Books, Charlottetown, Canada 1995

Lesbians Raising Sons

A collection of essays on what it means to be a lesbian raising a son.   Discusses things like feminism, coping with homophobia, and male role models.

Ed. By J. Wells. Alyson Publications.   New York. 1997

My Husband is Gay

About self-discovery and how women come to terms when their husbands come out of the closet.

C. Grever. The crossing press, freedom CA.2001

The other Mother: A lesbian's Fight for her Daughter (living out)

This book begins when the author and her partner decide to conceive.   After their child is born the two split up and Abrams is deemed "a biological stranger" and loses custody of her daughter.               

N. Abrams. University of Wisconsin Press. 1999

Parents At Last

A book telling the stories of 32 families and their struggles of building a family.

A. Peck. Clarkson Potter. 1998

Queer Parents Primer

All sorts of information about raising a child in a queer household from choosing schools,   to single parenting and gender awareness, great for any queer family.

S. A. Brill. New Harbinger Publications. 2001

Ultimate Guide to Pregnancy for Lesbians

A resource book written specifically for lesbians on how to get pregnant, maintain your health, protect your legal rights, give birth, be a single parent, or be a co-parent.

R. Pepper. Cleis Press, San Francisco. 1999

Unexpected Child: A Novel

Meg Krantz is a single and independent lesbian.   After meeting a four and half year old orphan girl while volunteering a an AIDS service provider, she may change her mind.

P. Grossman. Outbooks. 2000

The Velveteen Father

A moving memoir of a gay man's unexpected journey into fatherhood as he meets and falls in love with another gay man who has adopted children.

J. Green. Villard, New York. 1999

Waiting in the Wings:   Portrait of Queer Motherhood

A journal of being a lesbian mother, and a writer, during the first four years of her son's life.

C. Moraga.   Firebrand Books, Ithaca, NY.   1997

Women Together: Portraits of Love, Commitment and Life

A portrait of lesbian couples accompanied by stories. Not specifically about families but a beautiful book nonetheless.        

M. Holmund, C. Warwick, C. Gingrich. Runnning Press. 1999

There's Something I've Been Meaning to Tell You

True life stories from 25 lesbians and gay parents who have come out to their children.

L. MacPike. Naiad Press, Tallahassee.   1989