This article was written by Orion Rummler and originally published on The 19th
This story was originally reported by Orion Rummler of The 19th. Meet Orion and read more of his reporting on gender, politics and policy.
In the weeks leading up to Transgender Day of Visibility, book lovers are expected to raise hundreds of thousands of dollars for trans-led charities and organizations, while spreading the word about books written by and for trans and nonbinary people.
Until March 31, the 2025 Trans Rights Readathon will be in full swing. Participants read as many books as they want while raising money for trans-led groups of their choice. Each day, readers are encouraged to support transgender people by writing letters of support, sharing mutual aid fundraisers, signaling to their neighbors and colleagues that they are trans-friendly, or calling their elected representatives to alert them to the importance of trans rights in an increasingly hostile political climate.
In 2023, the readathon raised over $230,000 for organizations supporting trans people — through 2,669 participants reading across 43 countries. This year, those numbers are expected to grow, since the readathon is longer than it has been for the last two years. On social media, the Trans Rights Readathon account is sharing ample book recommendations to choose from — including dozens of novels written by trans Black, Latinx, and Asian authors, books that feature disabled characters, and books with romantic relationships between trans people.
This readathon aims to support Transgender Day of Visibility (TDOV), an annual celebration to recognize the contributions and lives of trans people, while raising awareness of the discrimination that they face.
As the readathon continues, here are a few book recommendations by independent booksellers and public libraries, as well as by the Trans Rights Readathon:
Books by, for, and about trans people — including memoirs, history, and fiction — recommended by Philly AIDS Thrift at Giovanni’s Room, which is the oldest continuously operating LGBTQ+ bookstore in the country:
- “Stag Dance: A Novel & Stories” by Torrey Peters
- “Paper Doll: Notes From A Late Bloomer” by Dylan Mulvaney
- “The Sapling Cage” by Margaret Killjoy
- “Casa Susanna: The Story of the First Trans Network in the United States” by Isabelle Bonnet, Sophie Hackett and Susan Stryker
- “A Safe Girl to Love” by Casey Plett
- “Make It Count: My Fight to Become the First Transgender Olympic Runner” by CeCé Telfer
Children’s picture books exploring trans identity recommended by the Comsewogue Public Library in Port Jefferson Station, New York:
- “Sam is My Sister” by Ashley Rhodes-Courter, illustrated by MacKenzie Haley
- “Jack (Not Jackie)” by Erica Silverman, illustrated by Holly Hatam
- “I’m Not a Girl” by Maddox Lyons and Jessica Verdi, illustrated by Dana Simpson
- “When Aidan Became a Brother” by Kyle Lukoff, illustrated by Kaylani Juanita
Literary fiction featuring trans characters or written by trans authors, recommended by Little District Books, an LGBTQ+ bookstore based in Washington, D.C.:
- “I Want What I Want” by Geoff Brown
- “Little Blue Encyclopedia (for Vivian)” by Hazel Jane Plante
- “All the Things We Don’t Talk About” by Amy Feltman
- “Paul Takes the Form of a Mortal Girl” by Andrea Lawlor
- “The Thirty Names of Night” by Zeyn Joukhadar
- “Endpapers” by Jennifer Savran Kelly
Books that celebrate trans joy, including fiction, graphic novels and essay collections recommended by the Trans Rights Readathon:
- “Falling Back in Love with Being Human” by Kai Cheng Thom
- “Gender euphoria: Stories of joy from trans, non binary and intersex writers” edited by Laura Kate Dale
- “Homebody” by Theo Parish, illustrated by Theo Parish
- “Peter Darling” by Austin Chant
- “This Is Our Rainbow: 16 Stories of Her, Him, Them, and Us” edited by Katherine Locke and Nicole Melleby
States have been proposing bills to weaken civil rights laws, banning books and trying to keep students from learning about LGBTQ+ people in schools. At the same time, sales of LGBTQ+ books for young adults — as well as queer romance books and LGBTQ+ literature in general — have been booming in recent years. Even as this political effort to restrict LGBTQ+ Americans’ rights has grown stronger, more people are seeking out stories that explore LGBTQ+ voices.
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