Middle Grade and YA with Ace Protagonists

October 28, 2023

Middle Grade and YA with Ace Protagonists

Happy Ace Week! Here are six MG and YA books with ace rep--along with some probably also amazing books that are still on my TBR.

Middle Grade

Rick by Alex Gino

Rick has always let everyone else figure out who he is for him: his dad, who jokes with him about what girls he might want to date (though Rick has never had any interest in that, ever). His best friend, Jeff, who can be a total jerk sometimes, but that's just the way things are. So when Rick starts middle school, and finds himself joining the Rainbow Spectrum Club, he might be able to finally figure out who he is on his own.

the one who loves you the most

The One Who Loves You the Most by medina

Gabriela has always felt a little out of place--in the way the world sees them as a girl, and as a Latinx adoptee in a white family. At home, they long to help with their mom's depression; but at school, where they don't have any close friends, they feel like they can't even speak up for themself. But Gabriela learns to feel less alone when they meet some supportive queer friends (and maybe even...a girlfriend?) who teach them about all the different ways they can identify outside of girl or boy.

TW: parent with depression

Hazel's Theory of Evolution by Lisa Jenn Bigelow

Hazel already has enough to worry about, starting at a new school in eighth grade. But when one of her moms announces that she's pregnant, Hazel couldn't feel worse about it. Hazel loves her family, and the idea of being a big sister--but her mom has already miscarried twice, and Hazel doesn't think that her family could handle a third time.

Luckily, Hazel has an escape in the wide world of animals. After spending time with the goats that her other mom raises for their milk, her favorite pastime is reading through nature encyclopedias. She's even working on her own. All she needs is to get through the school year, and her mother's pregnancy, without having any big feelings or standing out among her classmates. But when Hazel makes some unexpected friends at school, she starts to wonder whether her plan of hiding all year is actually worth it. With the help of her family and new friends, Hazel will get through this year--and maybe the other side will be even better.

This Is Our Rainbow

This Is Our Rainbow, edited by Katherine Locke and Nicole Melleby

A charming, heartwarming, and inclusive anthology of middle grade short stories and comics centered around LGBTQIA+ kids, with stories from much-loved authors such as Molly Knox Ostertag, Alex Gino, Shing Yin Khor, and Justina Ireland.

A non-binary kid discovers their unique sense of style--and some new friends along the way. An animated gollem thinks she can't feel human emotions--but ends up falling for the princess she is charged with rescuing. A witch girl transforms into a dog to find a way to form a deep friendship with her new neighbor. In these amazing stories, sixteen queer kids find a place for themselves to belong, find joy, and live their lives to the fullest.

Young Adult

A Snake Falls to Earth by Darcie Little Badger

Nina is a Lipan girl growing up above her dad's bookstore in Texas. She's fascinated by the stories about the Joined Era, a time when humans and animal spirits lived together on earth. When Nina's great-great-grandmother died, she left behind a story...and Nina is determined to unravel it.

Oli is a cottonmouth spirit from the Reflecting World of animal spirits and monsters. He's found a home on the banks of the bottomless lake, sunbathing and meeting new friends among the animal spirits that live there.

Though the time when the human world and the Reflecting World were connected is over, earth still has affects on Oli's home. A climate disaster on earth leaves one of Oli's best friends dying, and sends Oli, along with two coyote girls and a hawk, on a journey to earth to find a cure.

The way Nina and Oli's stories connect will change both of their lives forever...but though Oli has left the land of monsters, that doesn't mean that he or Nina is safe from them.

Elatsoe

Elatsoe by Darcie Little Badger

Elatsoe can bring back ghosts. Her power isn't completely unheard of, though--she lives in an America that is full of magic tracing back to Indigenous and immigrant roots. The main thing Elatsoe has done with her power was to bring back her dog, Kirby. But when her cousin mysteriously dies, and everyone says that it was just a car accident, Elatsoe calls up his ghost to get the real story.

While her family is caught up in mourning, Elatsoe is on a mission: find her cousin's murderer, with the help of Kirby and her best friend Jay. Her search leads her to a perfect little town--perhaps too perfect--and a sinister Doctor who seems to be hiding something.