Book recommendations to celebrate Pride 2025

This June members of the UCL community were invited to recommend books in celebration of Pride 2025. 

Guided by the values of visibility, unity, and equality, we asked for recommendations that speak to whatever Pride means to you. Some of you chose books centred around LGBTQ+ love stories, set in periods spanning from ancient Greece to the present day. Others recommended books that feature LGBTQ+ characters in the escapist realms of fantasy, science fiction and dystopian futures. Some of the books recommended highlight the struggles faced by LGBTQ+ people, and how these struggles align with other persecuted groups. And some highlight the important contributions made by members of the LGBTQ+ community to fields such as the arts.

We will acquire any of the books recommended that aren’t already in UCL’s collection, so you’ll be able to borrow them from the library in future. And with London Pride taking place on Saturday 5 July, we hope some of these titles will get you in the mood to celebrate!

Let us know how many you’ve read and you can still share your own recommendations through the online form or on Instagram.

Non-fiction

Queer Art: From Canvas to Club, and the Spaces Between by Gemma Rolls-Bentley

“This is a beautifully curated book of around 200 artworks celebrating the richness, self-expression and resilience of queer life. From intimate portraits to works charting the fight for LQBTQIA+ rights, the book offers fresh perspectives and insights into queer life.”

Nicola, IOE, staff

Marlow Moss by Lucy Howarth

“Marlow was a maverick artist, forgotten until recently. The first British constructivist artist, they worked in painting and sculpture some of which is now in Tate Britain.”

Julie, IOE, staff 

Prisoner of Love by Jean Genet

“Based on Genet’s time with the Black Panthers and the Palestinian liberation movement, a book about interconnectedness of struggles, as relevant today as it was when it was written in the 80s. A truly queer book suggestion that will probably be censored.”

Hollywood Heartbreak | New York Dreams by Kody Christiansen 

“Hollywood Heartbreak | New York Dreams is a bruised and glittering love letter to becoming. Tracing a queer life through fame, addiction, heartbreak, homelessness, and the long road back to finding oneself through sobriety and with the support of a chosen family. It is the perfect Pride month read because it does not flinch from the pain or the beauty, it does not hide the truth, and it dares to believe that even the most broken dreams can still come true. An award-winning memoir written by UCL post-grad student, Kody Christiansen.”

Atypical: Five Strategy Rules for a New World by Prateek Raj

“The author is queer, and it talks about how listening to ‘atypical’ voices is necessary for good decision making. The author Prateek Raj is a UCL academic.”

Historical fiction

The Safekeep by Yael van der Wouden

“It just won the Women's Prize for Fiction (and deservedly so). It's a really gorgeous slow burn love story between two women set in the Dutch countryside in 1961. It left me breathless.”

Tasha, Vice-President External Engagement (VPEE) team, staff

Tipping the Velvet by Sarah Waters

“It's a novel that I found astonishing in its honesty and intimate portrayal of queer female sexualities. To this day, I always recommend it to friends and acquaintances that may struggle to grasp queer sexuality, and to those who are on their own discovery journey. It's a powerful representation of queer love, relationships, self-expression, but also of the shame, guilt and struggles associated with sexuality, which still resonate today.”

Anna, Research Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, staff

The Things a Bright Girl Can Do by Sally Nichols

“Two Suffragettes fall in love.”

The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller

“It is a beautiful (and tragic) representation of true love.”

Alice Auckland, UCL Communications, staff 

Graphic novels

Kari by Amruta Patil

“A graphic novel that demands attention, reflection, and deep engagement from the reader, Kari is unconventional in its storytelling, rich in symbolism, and unflinching in its exploration of existential questions. If you appreciate non-linear narratives, philosophical depth, and artfully crafted books, this one might be for you!”

Gayathri Kumar, IOE, student

Romance

Maurice by E.M. Forster

“It is a beautiful story set in early 20th century England.”

UCL alumni

Young adult

Loveless by Alice Oseman

“It follows a group of university students full of LGBTQIA+ characters, with the main character Georgia being aroace (Aromantic Asexual) - an identity that has very little representation in the media! Such a heartwarming story!”

Drew Sadler, Department of Information Studies, student

They Both Die at the End (Death-Cast #1) by Adam Silvera

“This is a nominally dystopian YA book that I came across inadvertently. The story is about two young men who meet for one day only, having been told that one of them will die within the next 24 hours. It sounds dark, but is actually very uplifting. The author reminds us that 'there is no love without loss' and that it is possible to live a lifetime in a single day.”

Contemporary fiction

Razorblade Tears by S.A. Cosby

“It's a fast-paced and moving novel about two dads grappling with homophobia after losing their sons in a brutal murder.”

Lisa, UCL Medical School Placements, staff

Real Life by Brandon Taylor

"It is a great read!"

Palm Meridian by Grace Flahive

“It’s playful, funny, tugs on your heart strings, and is a meaningful glimpse into love, loss and queerness at the later stages of life. Full of heartbreak, humour, and cheeky fun.”

Francis Varela, Library, Culture, Collections and Open Science (LCCOS), staff

Detransition, baby by Torrey Peters

“It explored aspects of trans and non-binary expression and experience that I'd not encountered or heard anyone speak about, and the story is both joyful and heartbreaking but fresh and gripping.”

Hollie Rowland, Advanced Research Computing Centre, staff

Queer by William S. Burroughs

“The most graphic and visceral yet tragically accurate representation of the cis gay experience touching upon male loneliness, the true meaning of being gay and substance abuse. It also introduces you to the one of the most influential authors of the Beat Generation whose sharp writing style delivers provocative emotion in devastating simplicity. Also, Luca Guadagnino's masterful cinematic rendition gives this incomplete manuscript the resolution Burroughs' soul must have craved.”

Arvind Iyengae, Faculty of Law, student

Fantasy

Under the Whispering Door by T.J. Klune

“This is a funny and moving story about finding love even after death. It combines real world characters with an imaginative and whimsical afterlife, with a strong emphasis on love and managing grief.”

Rebecca Marriott, School of Pharmacy, staff

Paladin's Hope by T. Kingfisher

“This is a fantasy mystery romance, it is the third in a series and the first two are worth reading but not strictly necessary to enjoy this one. I recommend it because not only is it a well-written bit of escapism - being somehow both action packed with high stakes while also being sweet and soothing. In this universe being gay isn't a big deal, but being a different species is and a run in with bigoted authorities means this novel is a lovely bit of escapism but also has a point of view and clear social commentary. It is a very hard balance that many authors don't get right, but T. Kingfisher pretty consistently nails.”

Casey MacKenzie Johnson, Hebrew & Jewish Studies, staff

Science fiction

Little Mushroom by Shishi

“Gay relationship that is not the highlight of the story, but incorporated into a very cool science fiction post-apocalyptic world. It even managed to win a science-fiction prize in a CCP ruled country.”

A Memory Called Empire by Arkady Martine

“It's really interesting and compelling sci-fi that is LGBTQ+ positive, as well as exploring identity more broadly in engaging ways.”

Aidan, Arts and Sciences, student

Light from Uncommon Stars by Ryka Aoki

“It's bright and whimsical and ultimately joyful and we live in a time where we need all the queer whimsy and joy we can get. It brings the energy of Douglas Adams or Terry Pratchett to a story about three queer women in California's East Asian diaspora communities as they face down an intergalactic war, transphobia, and the forces of Hell itself.” 

Rachel Porcher, IOE Library, staff

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion in UCL Library, Culture, Collections and Open Science

This activity was organised through the Library Liberating the Collections Group. The purpose of this group is to identify and oversee progress with a strategic set of actions intended to enrich the collections, increasing visibility of, and access to, works by authors who have been marginalised (and thus less heard) because of factors such as race, sexuality, gender and disability. Any titles that we don’t already own we will buy and add to our collections and will be available shortly.