Hard Love, by Ellen Wittlinger

Wittlinger, Ellen. (1999). Hard Love. New York: Simon & Schuster. 224 pages. 

Description from Alex Sanchez's Web listing:

This very hip, very contemporary novel set in the world of homemade zines (magazines) finds 16-year-old John “Gio” Galardi, Jr., falling in love with the amazing Marisol Guzman, a self-proclaimed Puerto Rican Cuban Yankee Lesbian. The two form an unlikely friendship based on zines, alienation, and dreams of escape. John questions his own sexuality as he struggles with his unrequited love for Marisol, who has no doubts at all about who she is. Hard Love is an absorbing book about loss, love, trust, family, transformation, and, interestingly, authorship. 

Available at SF Public Library.

From the Notebooks of Melanin Sun, by Jacqueline Woodson

Woodson, Jacqueline. (1995). From the Notebooks of Melanin Sun. New York: Scholastic. 141 pages.
 
Description from Alex Sanchez's listing of LGBTQ resources:

13-year-old Melanin Sun’s comfortable, quiet life is shattered when his mother reveals she has fallen in love with a woman. Adding even greater dimension to this story is the fact that Melanin and his mother are black, while the woman his mother has fallen in love with is white. Wonderfully written, as are all of Woodson’s books. While only a few of the author’s books deal with gay or lesbian characters, almost all deal with issues of race. 

Available at the SF Public Library. Is this a middle school book?

How to Do the History of Homosexuality, by David M. Halperin

Halperin, David M. (2002). How to Do the History of Homosexuality. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. 208 pages.

Heavy theory, but good for defining some of the key concepts in LGBTQ historical studies. Halperin is a classicist, so he's a good source on ancient Greece and Rome. The second chapter, "The First Homosexuality," begins with a history of the term "lesbian" that could be modified for use with students. Available at the SF Public Library.

Sapphistries, by Leila J. Rupp

Rupp, Leila J. (2009). Sapphistries: A Global History of Love between Women. New York: New York University Press. 303 pages.

A global history in the cutting-edge sense of the term, Sapphistries is organized chronologically and covers a range of global regions within each time period. Rupp challenges both male-centric analysis and Western-centric analysis.

Allison, Eric, and Pete own copies. Copies now being processed at the SF Public Library.

Different Rainbows, edited by Peter Drucker

Drucker, Peter (ed.). (2000). Different Rainbows. London: Gay Men's Press.

Although the writings date mostly from the mid-1990s, they are very well done and should be a good starting point for research on contemporary conditions in the regions addressed, which include Mexico, Brazil, Nicaragua, and Latin American in general; South Africa, Kenya, Southeast Asia, and China.

Most chapters include references to pre-modern history in the region as well as contemporary conditions. A recurring theme is the limitation of defining LGBTQ life in terms of U.S. and European experiences. The introduction and conclusion deal clearly and directly with such issues.

Pete owns a copy. Available in the SF Public Library.

Black Like Us

Carbado, Devon W., McBride, Dwight A., & Weise, Donald (eds.). (2002). Black Like Us: A Century of Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual African American Fiction. San Francisco: Cleis Press. 555 pages.

Similar to Go the Way Your Blood Beats. Organized into three sections: Harlem Renaissance, Protest Era, and 1980 to 2000. Available at the SF Public Library.

Go the Way Your Blood Beats, edited by Shawn Stewart Ruff

Ruff, Shawn Stewart (ed.). (1996). Go the Way Your Blood Beats: An Anthology of Lesbian and Gay Fiction by African-American Writers. New York: Henry Holt and Company. 544 pages.

Short stories on gay and lesbian themes by African American writers. Mostly from the second half of the 20th century. Similar to Black Like Us.

Available from the SF Public Library.

Out of the Past, by Neil Miller

Miller, Niel. (2006). Out of the Past: Gay and Lesbian History from 1869 to the Present. New York: Alyson Books. 678 pages.

Extensive collection of readings, including historical documents and excerpts from literature. Mostly focused on the United States, with some chapters on European topics, and one chapter on Russia and another on Japan. Includes a two-page piece "The Word Gay," written in the early 1950s ("... certainly by the nineteen-thirites it was the most common word in use among homosexuals themselves" [p. 328].)

Erik owns a copy. Available in the SF Public Library, which also has an earlier edition. We should have at least one copy for teacher use, and if we use enough of the readings we should buy a class set. (Available from Barnes & Noble.)

The Emerging Lesbian, by Tse-lan D. Sang

San, Tse-lan D. (2003). The Emerging Lesbian: Female Same-sex Desire in Modern China. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. 392 pages.

Includes chapters on lesbians in pre-modern China, Republican China, contemporary China, and contemporary Taiwan. Available at the SF Public Library.

Becoming Visible, edited by Kevin Jennings

Jennings, Kevin (ed.). (1994). Becoming Visible. Los Angeles: Alyson Publications. 297 pages.

A little old, but an excellent reader for a high school LGBTQ course. Three sections:

• Pre-modern history: Ancient Greece and Rome, Ancient China, Berdache, women in early modern U.S.
  
• Emergence of the Modern Gay Movement: Almost exclusively U.S.
  
• Eighties and Nineties: Mostly about the U.S.
  

Very thoughtfully edited volume. Includes the historiographical issues as well as straight content. Each chapter includes a variety of short readings. Should definitely consider as a text for all students. It's out of print, but we could probably find enough used copies. Available at the SF Public Library.

The chapter "Gays around the Globe" is marginally useful. The Danish articles are way out of date; the Chinese articles from Washington Post are useless; the pieces by Indian lesbians and gay Muslim are better but very short.

The Full Spectrum, edited by David Levithan & Billy Merrell

Levithan, David, & Merrell, Billy (eds.). (2006). The Full Spectrum: A New Generation of Writing about Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, Questioning, and Other Identities. New York: Alfred A. Knopf. 272 pages.

About 40 short non-fiction pieces written by (mostly white, it seems) queer youth under the age of 23. Pete owns a copy. Connected to the Queerthology web site. Available at the SF Public Library.