Early Beginnings of LGBTQ YA Literature
Published in 1969, John Donovan’s I’ll Get There. It Better Be Worth The Trip was the first book featuring gay content geared for young adult audiences. [1] In this work, a young man moves to New York with his mother following the death of his grandmother. There, he meets Douglas Altschuler, and the two begin spending time together, which eventually evolves into a physical relationship. Given that the work represented the first YA book with LGBTQ content in a time when these issues were rarely discussed, the publishers were ready for some criticism. However, the book received primarily positive reviews in print media and opened the door for more YA books featuring GLBTY content.[2]
Published in 1969, John Donovan’s I’ll Get There. It Better Be Worth The Trip was the first book featuring gay content geared for young adult audiences. [1] In this work, a young man moves to New York with his mother following the death of his grandmother. There, he meets Douglas Altschuler, and the two begin spending time together, which eventually evolves into a physical relationship. Given that the work represented the first YA book with LGBTQ content in a time when these issues were rarely discussed, the publishers were ready for some criticism. However, the book received primarily positive reviews in print media and opened the door for more YA books featuring GLBTY content.[2]
Evolution
Since 1969 to the present time, the number of books with gay and lesbian content for young adults has steadily increased. The evolution of LGBTQ YA literature generally corresponds with greater awareness and acceptance of gay and lesbian individuals in American society. Four years after publication of I’ll Get There. It Better Be Worth the Trip, the American Psychiatric Association voted to eliminate homosexuality from its list of psychiatric disorders.[3] In 1977, Harvey Milk became one of the first openly gay elected politicians in a major American city.[4] From the 1980’s to the 1990’s, LGBTQ literature for young adults doubled, and the numbers of books with LGBTQ content has continued to rise.[5]
Stereotypes and Messages
As LGBTQ young adult literature offerings grew in number, some novels also took on reflected certain stereotypes or common tropes reflecting societal norms at the time. For instance, early works in the LGBTQ YA literature often loosely correlated the coming out process with some other tragedy in the life of the protagonist. In I’ll Get There. It Better Be Worth the Trip, the protagonist blames the death of his dog on his burgeoning love affair. In the second LGBTQ YA novel, published in 1972 by Isabel Holland’s Man Without a Face, the main love interest has a heart attack following his affair with the protagonist. [5]
Criticisms of LGBTQ Young Adult Literature
Lack of Lesbian Characters in LGBTQ YA Literature
The subject matter of LGBTQ YA novels has also been criticized for a tendency to focus on gay male protagonists at the expense of lesbian protagonists. The first YA book featuring a lesbian protagonist was not published until 1976, 7 years after the first YA book with gay content. Ruby, by Rosa Guy, told the story of siblings from the Dominican Republic. One of the sisters, Ruby, has an affair with another women. However, in later books, Ruby is portrayed as having outgrown out of her attraction to women. It was not until the publication of Annie on My Mind by Nancy Garden in 1983 that the genre had its first classic story. Annie on My Mind is elegant and carefully drawn love story that remains a favorite for many readers.[7] However, Annie on My Mind was far from the norm at this time. In the 1980’s, 73% of the characters in GLBTQ YA literature were gay, whereas only 27% were lesbian.[8] The number of books with lesbian content has continued to increase, as have depictions of lesbian protagonists from diverse backgrounds.
Recurring Subject Matter
Many young adult titles with LGBTQ content contain similar themes. For instance, a majority of books in this genre concern the process of coming out rather than the stories of individuals simply living with gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender or queer identities. For instance, out of the 75 LGBTQ young adult books books published during the 1990’s, 51 out of dealt with the coming out process rather than living as an out teen.[9]
Secondary Characters versus Protagonists
LGBTQ YA literature has also seen a decline in the number of LGBTQ protagonists. Since the 1990’s, the percentage of LGBTQ characters have grown, but more of these characters are depicted as secondary characters rather than protagonists. In literature of this time, only 27% of gay or lesbian characters were depicted as protagonists, whereas 73% of gay or lesbian characters were portrayed as secondary characters.[10]
Conclusion
LGBTQ YA literature continues to evolve. New literature is emerging in which coming out is not the central theme of the story, but as an episode in one's wider life. New literature in the field is also introducing gay and lesbian characters from more diverse cultural and racial backgrounds, as well as more transgendered, bisexual and queer-identified protagonists. Thoughtful readers and continued critical analysis of the field will promote more varied storylines with a variety of protagonists.
For more information on the history of LGBTQ YA literature, please check out Michael Card’s excellent work, The Heart Has its Reasons: Young Adult Literature with Gay/Lesbian/Queer Content, 1969-2004 (Lanham, Md.: Scarecrow Press, 2006).
[1] Cart, Michael, and Christine Jenkins. The heart has its reasons: young adult literature with gay/lesbian/queer content, 1969-2004. Lanham, Md.: Scarecrow Press, 2006.
Id.
[4] Id.
[5] Id.
[6] Id.
[7] Cart, Michael, and Christine Jenkins. "The 1980s: Annie on My Mind and Beyond." In The heart has its reasons: young adult literature with gay/lesbian/queer content, 1969-2004, 40-81. Lanham, Md.: Scarecrow Press, 2006.
[8] Cart, Michael. "Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender literature: the controversies continue." In Young adult literature: from romance to realism, Chicago: American Library Association, 2010.
[9] Id.
