# American Library Association Rainbow Book List

The ALA Rainbow Book List is an annual list of "books with significant gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender content, and which are aimed at youth, birth through age 18" produced by the American Library Association's (ALA's) Rainbow Project, which is run by the ALA's Rainbow Round Table and Social Responsibilities Round Table.
Although roughly 4.5 percent of the U.S. population identifies as LGBT, "the vast majority of libraries lack high-quality, comprehensive LGBT collections" and "satisfaction among LGBT patrons is low." To ensure libraries have adequate LGBT books for readers of all ages, librarians should rely on resources such as the ALA's Rainbow List and the Lambda Literary Foundation.

## Honorees

Top Choices Per Year :
| Year | Category | Contributors | Title |
| 2011 | Picture Books | Anna Kemp | Dogs Don't Do Ballet |
| 2011 | Juvenile Fiction | Charlotte Agell | The Accidental Adventures of India McAllister |
| 2011 | Juvenile Fiction | Amy Ignatow | The Popularity Papers: Research for the Social Improvement and General Betterment of Lydia Goldblatt and Julie Graham-Chang |
| 2011 | Juvenile Fiction | Geraldine McCaughrean | The Death-Defying Pepper Roux |
| 2011 | Young Adult/Crossover Fiction | Jane Eagland | Wildthorn |
| 2011 | Young Adult/Crossover Fiction | John Green and David Levithan | Will Grayson, Will Grayson |
| 2011 | Young Adult/Crossover Fiction | Emily Horner | A Love Story Starring My Dead Best Friend |
| 2011 | Young Adult/Crossover Nonfiction | Sassafras Lowrey | Kicked Out |
| 2011 | Young Adult/Crossover Nonfiction | Jeff Sheng | Don't Ask. Don't Tell |
| 2011 | Young Adult/Crossover Nonfiction | Various | The Gallup's Modern Guide to Gay, Lesbian & Transgender Life (Series, 15 titles) |
| 2012 | Picture Books | Leslea Newman with Mike Dutton (Illus.) | Donovan's Big Day |
| 2012 | Middle Grade/Early Young Adult Fiction | Malinda Lo | Huntress |
| 2012 | Middle Grade/Early Young Adult Fiction | Bil Wright | Putting Makeup on the Fat Boy |
| 2012 | Young Adult Fiction | Cris Beam | I Am J |
| 2012 | Young Adult Fiction | Libba Bray | Beauty Queens |
| 2012 | Young Adult Fiction | Steve Brezenoff | Brooklyn Burning |
| 2012 | Young Adult Fiction | Laura Goode | Sister Mischief |
| 2012 | Young Adult Fiction | Lauren Myracle | Shine |
| 2012 | Young Adult Fiction | Julie Anne Peters | She Loves You. She Loves You Not |
| 2012 | Young Adult Fiction | Patrick Ryan | Gemini Bites |
| 2013 | Middle/Early Young Adult Fiction | Kirstin Cronn-Mills | Beautiful Music for Ugly Children |
| 2013 | Middle/Early Young Adult Fiction | Raina Telgemeier | Drama |
| 2013 | Middle/Early Young Adult Nonfiction | Sarah Moon (Ed.) | The Letter Q: Queer Writers Notes to Their Younger Selves |
| 2013 | Young Adult/Crossover Fiction | Lisa Jenn Bigelow | Starting From Here |
| 2013 | Young Adult/Crossover Fiction | Emily M. Danforth | The Miseducation of Cameron Post |
| 2013 | Young Adult/Crossover Fiction | A. S. King | Ask the Passengers |
| 2013 | Young Adult/Crossover Fiction | Malinda Lo | Adaptation |
| 2013 | Young Adult/Crossover Fiction | Madeline Miller | The Song of Achilles |
| 2013 | Young Adult/Crossover Fiction | Charles Rice-Gonzalez | Chulito: a Novel |
| 2013 | Young Adult/Crossover Fiction | Benjamin Alire Saenz | Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe |
| 2014 | Juvenile Fiction | Tim Federle | Better Nate than Ever |
| 2014 | Teen Nonfiction | Kate Bornstein | My New Gender Workbook: A Step-by-Step Guide to Achieving World Peace Through Gender Anarchy and Sex Positivity |
| 2014 | Teen Nonfiction | Ken Setterington | Branded by the Pink Triangle |
| 2014 | Teen Fiction | Francesca Lia Block | Love in the Time of Global Warming |
| 2014 | Teen Fiction | Kristin Elizabeth Clark | Freakboy |
| 2014 | Teen Fiction | Steven Dos Santos | The Culling |
| 2014 | Teen Fiction | Z Egloff | Leap |
| 2014 | Teen Fiction | Sara Farizan | If You Could Be Mine |
| 2014 | Teen Fiction | Alaya Dawn Johnson | The Summer Prince |
| 2014 | Teen Fiction | Laura Lam | Pantomime |
| 2015 | Picture Books | Jeffrey Bone and Lisa Bone | Not Every Princess |
| 2015 | Picture Books | Gayle E. Pitman with Kristyna Litten (Illus.) | This Day in June |
| 2015 | Young Adult Fiction | Janet E. Cameron | Cinnamon Toast and the End of the World |
| 2015 | Young Adult Fiction | Sara Farizan | Tell Me Again How a Crush Should Feel |
| 2015 | Young Adult Fiction | Jandy Nelson | I'll Give You the Sun |
| 2015 | Young Adult Fiction | Tess Sharpe | Far from You |
| 2015 | Young Adult Fiction | Andrew Smith | Grasshopper Jungle |
| 2015 | Young Adult Fiction | Julia Watts | Secret City |
| 2015 | Young Adult Nonfiction | Tim Anderson | Sweet Tooth |
| 2015 | Young Adult Nonfiction | Laurel Golio and Diana Scholl | We Are the Youth: Sharing the Stories of LGBT Youth in the United States |
| 2016 | Graphic Novels | Jillian Tamaki | SuperMutant Magic Academy |
| 2016 | Juvenile Fiction | Ami Polonsky | Gracefully Grayson |
| 2016 | Juvenile Fiction | Brian Selznick | The Marvels |
| 2016 | Juvenile Nonfiction | Cory Silverberg with Fiona Smyth (Illus.) | Sex is a Funny Word: A Book about Bodies, Feelings, and YOU |
| 2016 | Young Adult Fiction | Becky Albertalli | Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda |
| 2016 | Young Adult Fiction | Carrie Mesrobian | Cut Both Ways |
| 2016 | Young Adult Fiction | Raziel Reid | When Everything Feels Like the Movies |
| 2016 | Young Adult Fiction | Kate Scelsa | Fans of the Impossible Life |
| 2016 | Young Adult Fiction | Karelia Stetz-Waters | Forgive Me If I've Told You This Before |
| 2016 | Young Adult Nonfiction | Jack Andraka with Matthew Lysiak | Breakthrough |
| 2017 | Graphic Novels | Katie O'Neill | Princess Princess Ever After |
| 2017 | Picture Books | Yasmeen Ismail | I'm a Girl |
| 2017 | Picture Books | Jessica Walton | Introducing Teddy: A Gentle Story About Gender and Friendship |
| 2017 | Young Adult Fiction | Yvonne Cassidy | How Many Letters are in Goodbye? |
| 2017 | Young Adult Fiction | Shaun David Hutchinson | We Are the Ants |
| 2017 | Young Adult Fiction | Seanan McGuire | Every Heart a Doorway |
| 2017 | Young Adult Fiction | Anna-Marie McLemore | When the Moon Was Ours |
| 2017 | Young Adult Fiction | Laura Nowlin | This Song Is (Not) for You |
| 2017 | Young Adult Fiction | Na’amen Gobert Tilahun | The Root |
| 2017 | Young Adult Fiction | Kiersten White | And I Darken |
| 2018 | Board Books | Stella Blackstone and Sunny Scribens with Christiane Engel (Illus.) | Baby's First Words |
| 2018 | Middle Grade Fiction | Lisa Bunker | Felix Yz |
| 2018 | Middle Grade Fiction | Barbara Dee | Star-Crossed |
| 2018 | Young Adult Nonfiction | Ash Hardell | The ABCs of LGBT+ |
| 2018 | Young Adult Nonfiction | Dashka Slater | The 57 Bus |
| 2018 | Young Adult Fiction | Nina LaCour | We Are Okay |
| 2018 | Young Adult Fiction | Julie Murphy | Ramona Blue |
| 2018 | Young Adult Fiction | Adam Silvera | They Both Die at the End |
| 2018 | Young Adult Fiction | Courtney Stevens | Dress Codes for Small Towns |
| 2018 | Young Adult Fiction | James Tynion IV and Rian Sygh | The Backstagers Vol. 1 |
| 2019 | Picture Books Fiction | Daniel Haack and Stevie Lewis | Prince & Knight |
| 2019 | Picture Books Fiction | Gayle E. Pitman | Sewing the Rainbow |
| 2019 | Middle Grade Fiction | Kacen Callender | Hurricane Child |
| 2019 | Young Adult Fiction | Ashley Herring Blake | Girl Made of Stars |
| 2019 | Young Adult Fiction | Claire Kann | Let's Talk About Love |
| 2019 | Young Adult Fiction | Adib Khorram | Darius the Great Is Not Okay |
| 2019 | Young Adult Fiction | Natasha Ngan | Girls of Paper and Fire |
| 2019 | Young Adult Fiction | Lev A. C. Rosen | Jack of Hearts (and Other Parts) |
| 2019 | Young Adult Fiction | Nic Stone | Odd One Out |
| 2019 | Young Adult Fiction | Hamish Steele | DeadEndia: The Watcher's Test |
| 2020 | Picture Books Nonfiction | Rob Sanders and Jamey Christoph | Stonewall: A Building. An Uprising. A Revolution. |
| 2020 | Picture Books Fiction | Kyle Lukoff and Kaylani Juanita | When Aidan Became a Brother |
| 2020 | Picture Books Fiction | Heather Smith and Brooke Kerrigan | A Plan for Pops |
| 2020 | Young Adult Nonfiction | Shaun David Hutchinson | Brave Face |
| 2020 | Young Adult Fiction | Akwaeke Emezi | Pet |
| 2020 | Young Adult Fiction | Sabina Khan | The Love & Lies of Rukhsana Ali |
| 2020 | Young Adult Fiction | Bill Konigsberg | The Music of What Happens |
| 2020 | Young Adult Fiction | Tehlor Kay Mejia | We Set the Dark on Fire |
| 2020 | Young Adult Fiction | Tillie Walden | On a Sunbeam |
| 2020 | Young Adult Fiction | Suzanne Walker and Wendy Xu | Mooncakes |
| 2021 | Early Readers Nonfiction | Matthew Burgess and Josh Cochran (Illus.) | Drawing on Walls: A Story of Keith Haring |
| 2021 | Early Readers Nonfiction | Peter Mercurio and Leo Espinosa (Illus.) | Our Subway Baby |
| 2021 | Juvenile Fiction | DeShanna Neal, Trinity Neal, and Art Twink (Illus.) | My Rainbow |
| 2021 | Juvenile Fiction | Gayle E. Pitman and Violet Tobacco (Illus.) | My Maddy |
| 2021 | Juvenile Fiction | Rachel Simon and Noah Grigni (Illus.) | The Every Body Book: LGBTQ+ Inclusive Guide for Kids about Sex, Gender, Bodies, and Families |
| 2021 | Middle Grade Fiction | Kacen Callender | King and the Dragonflies |
| 2021 | Middle Grade Fiction | A. J. Sass | Ana on the Edge |
| 2021 | Young Adult Nonfiction | George Matthew Johnson | All Boys Aren't Blue: A Memoir-Manifesto |
| 2021 | Young Adult Fiction | Betsy Cornwell | Circus Rose |
| 2021 | Young Adult Fiction | Sarah Gailey | When We Were Magic |
| 2021 | Young Adult Fiction | Leah Johnson | You Should See Me in a Crown |
| 2021 | Young Adult Fiction | Lyla Lee | I'll Be the One |
| 2021 | Young Adult Fiction | Darcie Little Badger and Rovina Cai (Illus.) | Elatsoe |
| 2021 | Young Adult Fiction | Tehlor Kay Mejia and Anna-Marie McLemore | Miss Meteor |
| 2021 | Young Adult Fiction | Tochi Onyebuchi | War Girls |
| 2021 | Young Adult Fiction | Lev A. C. Rosen | Camp |
| 2021 | Young Adult Fiction | Aiden Thomas | Cemetery Boys |
| 2021 | Young Adult Fiction | Kat Leyh | Snapdragon |
| 2021 | Young Adult Fiction | Trung Le Nguyen | The Magic Fish |
| 2021 | Young Adult Fiction | Niki Smith | The Deep & Dark Blue |
| 2022 | Picture Books Fiction | Tyler Feder | Bodies Are Cool |
| 2022 | Picture Books Fiction | Vanessa Ford and JR | Calvin |
| 2022 | Picture Books Fiction | Harry Woodgate | Grandad's Camper |
| 2022 | Picture Books Fiction | Katherine Locke | What Are Your Words: A Book About Pronouns |
| 2022 | Juvenile Fiction | Jules Machais | Both Can Be True |
| 2022 | Juvenile Fiction | Meg Grehan | The Deepest Breath |
| 2022 | Juvenile Fiction | Gayle Forman | Frankie & Bug |
| 2022 | Juvenile Fiction | Kyle Lukoff | Too Bright to See |
| 2022 | Middle Grade Fiction | Mark Oshiro | The Insiders |
| 2022 | Middle Grade Fiction | Chad Lucas | Thanks a Lot, Universe |
| 2022 | Young Adult Fiction | Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé | Ace of Spades |
| 2022 | Young Adult Fiction | Eliot Schrefer | The Darkness Outside Us |
| 2022 | Young Adult Fiction | Mark Oshiro | Each of Us a Desert |
| 2022 | Young Adult Fiction | Adiba Jaigirdar | Hani and Ishu's Guide to Fake Dating |
| 2022 | Young Adult Fiction | Malinda Lo | Last Night at the Telegraph |
| 2022 | Young Adult Fiction | Tracy Deonn | Legendborn |
| 2022 | Young Adult Fiction | Isaac Fitzsimons | The Passing Playbook |
| 2022 | Young Adult Fiction | Kalynn Bayron | This Poison Heart |
| 2022 | Graphic Fiction | Molly Knox Ostertag | The Girl from the Sea |
| 2022 | Manga | Keito Gaku | Boys Run the Riot, vol 1-3 |
| 2023 | Picture Books Fiction | Alice B. McGinty and David Roberts (illus.) | Bathe the Cat |
| 2023 | Picture Books Fiction | Nina LaCour and Kaylani Juanita (illus.) | Mama and Mommy and Me in the Middle |
| 2023 | Picture Books Nonfiction | Carole Boston Weatherford, Rob Sanders, and Byron McCray | A Song for the Unsung: Bayard Rustin, the Man Behind the 1963 March on Washington |
| 2023 | Upper Elementary Fiction | Kacen Callender | Moonflower |
| 2023 | Upper Elementary Fiction | Michael Leali | The Civil War of Amos Abernathy |
| 2023 | Upper Elementary Fiction | Yoon Lee | Tiger Honor |
| 2023 | Upper Elementary Fiction | Mark Oshiro | You Only Live Once, David Bravo |
| 2023 | Upper Elementary Fiction | A.J. Sass | Ellen Outside the Lines |
| 2023 | Middle School Fiction | Kyle Lukoff | Different Kinds of Fruit |
| 2023 | Middle School Graphic Fiction | Olivia Stephens | Artie and the Wolf Moon |
| 2023 | Young Adult Nonfiction | Eliot Schrefer and Jules Zuckerberg (illus.) | Queer Ducks (and Other Animals): The Natural World of Animal Sexuality |
| 2023 | Young Adult Fiction | Jen Ferguson | The Summer of Bitter and Sweet |
| 2023 | Young Adult Fiction | Ryan La Sala | The Honeys |
| 2023 | Young Adult Fiction | Maya MacGregor | The Many Half-Lived Lives of Sam Sylvester |
| 2023 | Young Adult Fiction | Alice Oseman | Loveless |
| 2023 | Young Adult Fiction | Aden Polydoros | The City Beautiful |
| 2023 | Young Adult Fiction | Sol Santana | Just Ash |
| 2023 | Young Adult Fiction | Tucker Shaw | When You Call My Name |
| 2023 | Young Adult Fiction | Aiden Thomas | The Sunbearer Trials |
| 2023 | Young Adult Novel in Verse Fiction | Ashley Woodfolk | Nothing Burns as Bright as You |
| 2024 | Picture Books Fiction | Gareth Peter and Izzy Evans (illus.) | My Mommies Built a Treehouse |
| 2024 | Picture Books Fiction | Harry Woodgate | Grandad's Pride |
| 2024 | Upper Elementary Nonfiction | Sarah Prager and Caitlin O'Dwyer (illus.) | A Child's Introduction to Pride: The Inspirational History and Culture of LGBTQIA+ Community |
| 2024 | Upper Elementary Fiction | Leah Johnson | Ellie Engle Saves Herself |
| 2024 | Upper Elementary Fiction | Nicole Melleby and A.J. Sass | Camp QUILTBAG |
| 2024 | Upper Elementary Fiction | Maulik Pancholy | Nikhil Out Loud |
| 2024 | Upper Elementary Fiction | Ronnie Riley | Jude Saves the World |
| 2024 | Upper Elementary Fiction | Kai Shappley and Lisa Bunker | Joy to the World |
| 2024 | Upper Elementary Fiction | Esme Symes-Smith | Sir Callie and the Champions of Helston |
| 2024 | Upper Elementary Fiction | Jake Maia Arlow | The Year My Life Went Down the Toilet |
| 2024 | Young Adult Fiction | James Acker | The Long Run |
| 2024 | Young Adult Fiction | Becky Albertalli | Imogen, Obviously |
| 2024 | Young Adult Fiction | Jonny Garza Villa | Ander & Santi Were Here: a Novel |
| 2024 | Young Adult Fiction | Jas Hammonds | We Deserve Monuments |
| 2024 | Young Adult Fiction | Anna-Marie McLemore | Self-Made Boys: A Great Gatsby Remix |
| 2024 | Young Adult Fiction | Lio Min | Beating Heart Baby |
| 2024 | Young Adult Fiction | Gabe Cole Novoa | The Wicked Bargain |
| 2024 | Young Adult Fiction | Trang Thanh Tran | She Is a Haunting |
| 2024 | Young Adult Graphic Fiction | Rey Terciero and Bre Indigo (illus.) | Northranger |
| 2024 | Young Adult Manga Fiction | Uta Isaki | Is Love the Answer? |