With more and more focus on the importance of representing different experiences in our media, there’s a growing amount of characters that demonstrate different experiences with mental health and being queer. This intersection of identities is critical to see brought up both because of the stigma that still surrounds mental health and diversion from traditional cisgender heterosexuality, but also because being queer and struggling with mental health is an unfortunately common phenomenon.
One place to find such representation is in books! Books, in contrast to visual media like television and movies, often offer a deeper look into the characters’ minds, revealing complex emotional journeys and detailing the work it takes to move forward. Books can also be a wonderful way to get a look into the different kinds of experiences people of a variety of backgrounds can have with a variety of situations — especially if they’re written in a similar perspective as the author. Plus, reading is fun — and a great relaxing pastime for the summer. (Have you reached your reading goal yet, or?)
Whether you’re looking for something to read on the beach or a reason to go to your local library, try these five queer books about mental health — because representation matters.
- Darius the Great is Not Okay by Adib Khorram ($11)
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For anyone who’s ever struggled with identity and family history, this book will speak to you. Darius visits his mother’s family in Iran for the first time in this book and struggles with feeling just as out of place there as he does back home in the U.S. He and his father also both struggle with depression, and the book offers different depictions of that experience via two characters. It and its sequel (Darius the Great Deserves Better) are both well-regarded for mental health rep and rep of queer youth.
- Always Human by Ari North ($13)
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A graphic novel that originally grew popular as a webcomic on Webtoons, Always Human is a science fiction story that explores what it means to be human in a world where physical alterations to one’s body are commonplace. A consequence of this society is, quite predictably, a struggle with body image for those who are unable to alter themselves to the ideal. But while eating disorders and dysphoria appear in this book, it is primarily a sapphic love story told through beautiful art.
- Catch Lili Too by Sophie Whittemore ($17)
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If you’re anything like me, you’re confused by the fact that all these immortal beings in fantasy never seem to struggle with the whole alive-forever thing. In Catch Lili Too, Lili, an asexual siren, struggles with depression because she’s been alive for so long. Goodreads reviewers found it odd but enjoyable, and it features a mystery and a host of other supernatural characters to scratch a genre itch.
- The Grief Keeper by Alexandra Villasante ($11)
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Marisol, a teenager from El Salvador, is denied asylum into the U.S. on her first try. She finally manages to get in, however, after she agrees to be a part of a study where she takes on another person’s grief. The other participant in the study is unaware of what’s happening, but you can imagine the consequences of having such pressure on you. An imaginative premise to mimic the way immigrants often take the jobs no one else would be willing to do, The Grief Keeper is a heavy book that addresses many real-world issues while also managing to be tender and hopeful.
- Radio Silence by Alice Oseman ($9)
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Alice Oseman is known for the graphic novel series Heartstopper and its Netflix TV show (season 3 is coming in October!), but she’s also the author of some traditional novels. While Heartstopper deals with mental health issues related to eating disorders, Radio Silence is a novel that explores the effects of academic pressure on one’s mental health. It is also notable for, as the author says, featuring “a friendship between a boy and a girl where they don’t fall in love.”
Every experience with mental health or identity is different, just like these books. From the different settings to the varied stories, hopefully, one of the books above triggered your interest. I don’t know about you, but I think I’ll be heading to the library to check out a book (or four) this week!