Camp QUILTBAG by Nicole Melleby and A.J. Sass

 

When Kai (e/em/eir) and Abigail (she/her/hers) meet in the forest of Camp QUILTBAG, a summer camp for queer kids, neither of them is sure they should be there. Kai just wants to be at home, doing parkour with eir friends, and trying to forget about the incident that put eir arm in a cast. Abigail, though initially excited to meet more kids like her who won't laugh at her crushes on older actresses, is feeling out of place among a lot of other queer kids who seem like they have their identities all figured out.

Soon, though, Abigail and Kai figure out a way they can help each other: if Kai helps Abigail make some friends at camp, Abigail will help competitive Kai's cabin win the camp-wide competition. But deals never go as smoothly as planned, and as both Kai and Abigail navigate crushes, new friendships, and insecurities, they will both have to figure out what matters the most to them before the summer ends.

I loved both of these characters, especially because they were featured in the anthology This Is Our Rainbow, so I got to meet them before reading Camp QUILTBAG! This fun summer camp book is just one of 36 that will be featured on my upcoming list of LGBTQIA+ middle grade novels. Keep an eye out for that, and happy pride!