QUEER CHEER

This illustrated guide with a strong emphasis on joy and self-love offers readers a “queer teen survival kit.”

Through seven distinct sections—“Identity,” “Helpful Habits,” “Confidence,” “Relationships,” “School,” “Our Community,” and “Success & Future”—Rosswood and Anders present information on a wide variety of topics. The authors open by describing their own genders and sexual identities and offering some personal information about their lives. They also make others’ life stories an integral part of the book’s content: Portions of the text consist of speech bubbles containing brief reflections by queer teens from around the U.S. who represent diversity in sexuality, gender identity, race, religion, and other factors. Teens can go through the work cover to cover or dip into it according to their needs and interests. Each section is formatted similarly, using layouts that resemble a scrapbook or bulletin board. Many of the text-heavy pages feature solid black backgrounds with text boxes in bright, rainbow-colored hues and (mostly) black or white text; some may find the design visually exhausting and difficult to read. The density of information offered here is better suited to browsing than sustained reading; it reflects a well-meaning and important desire to provide readers with a wealth of options, information, and stories in a compact package.

An empathetic handbook that will support a broad range of readers.