47. A book where the main character (or author) is of a different ethnic origin, religion, or sexual identity than your own

[Zaz]

This prompt is about picking a book written by an author or with a character who has a different religion/ethnic group/sexual identity than you.

Note: Only diverse lists added bellow. If you're not caucasian or straight, you have plenty of choices with most of the books in the publishing market.

POC = person of color.
LGBTQ = lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or queer.

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Suggestions:
GR POC authors shelf
34 Books by Women of Color to Read This Year
21 Books by POC Writers That You Should Definitely Read at Some Point
Faces of Color on 2017 YA Books
2018 SFF by POC (Listopia)
2016 YA/MG Books With POC Leads (Listopia)
2017 YA/MG Books With POC Leads (Listopia)
2018 YA/MG Books With POC Leads (Listopia)
2018 Picture Books With POC Leads (Listopia)
Non-Caucasian Protagonists in Science Fiction, Fantasy, Horror, and Paranormal Romance (Listopia)
South Asians in Contemporary YA (Listopia)
14 YA Books About LGBTQ People of Color
23 LGBTQ Books With A POC Protagonist
30 Essential LGBT Books for YA Readers
20 Years of L.G.B.T.Q. Lit: A Timeline
LGBTQ Books for Middle Grade Readers (+14)
The Greatest Books Written by LGBTQ+ Writers
Diversity in Graphic Novels
16 Great Diversity Graphic Novels for Kids and Teens
Diversity in Graphic Novels and Comics: Titles A-Z
34 Young Adult Novels To Diversify Your Bookshelf
Suggestions for the 2017 diversity challenge (include categories)
Books for the 2017 diversity bingo (listopia)
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Optional questions:
- What are you reading for this category?
- Why did you choose this book?

[Tracy]

For this one I picked Will Grayson, Will Grayson, a different gender, and a different sexual identity.

[Cheri]

I'm thinking of Sing, Unburied, Sing since it's gotten such great reviews. I might also read The Butterfly Mosque: A Young American Woman's Journey to Love and Islam since I really like G. Willow Wilson and I'm curious about why she is a muslim.

[Jody]

Ooh, I’ve just added The Butterfly Mosque to my TBR. I just finished the first Volume of Ms. Marvel and really enjoyed it, and her memoir sounds fascinating.

[Shelly]

I will read Pachinko by Min Jin Lee.

[Emily, Conterminous Mod]

I had so many that I was considering for other categories that would also fit in this one.. I'll be choosing between:

The Power (POC)
Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda (LGBTQ & Gender)
The One Hundred Nights of Hero (LGBTQ & Gender)
Exit West (POC & Gender)
The Song of Achilles (LGBTQ & Gender)
Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe (POC & LGBTQ & Gender)
They Both Die at the End (LGBTQ)
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks (POC)
The Hate U Give (POC)

[Katie]

Sing, Unburied, Sing and The Hate U Give - I very much recommend both.

I also just read Dear Martin by Nic Stone last week, which was also very good. I consider it a good companion novel to The Hate U Give. It deals with some similar themes.

[Laura • lauralovestoread]

The Secret Life of Bees
The Teahouse Fire
Sing, Unburied, Sing
The Good Lord Bird
Pachinko
The Color Purple
The Valley of Amazement

[Melanie]

Considering the fact that I'm quite cheerfully a lesbian, it would be really easy to just read something het for this particular topic. However, I can't shake the feeling that that would be somehow cheating, so I'm going to focus on the ethnicity part. I'm almost definitely going to be reading Passing, but I might also read The House of the Spirits, Purple Hibiscus, or The Sympathizer.

[Emily, Conterminous Mod]

Melanie wrote: "Considering the fact that I'm quite cheerfully a lesbian, it would be really easy to just read something het for this particular topic. However, I can't shake the feeling that that would be somehow..."

"Quite cheerfully a lesbian" I love it! I'm trying to integrate more LGBTQ+ books into my read next year (I'm aiming for 12 written by or featuring main characters), so if you have any recommendations, please let me know! Most of the ones I'm finding are YA and feature boys, so I'd love to find some good lesbian characters to read.

[Jody]

I’d definitely be interested in recommendations too!

Emily, have you read The Color Purple yet? I read it back in 2015 for our very first challenge (back when we started with the POPSUGAR one) and fell in love with it. Totally not something I’d normally read, and it took a little while to get comfortable with the language style, but it was absolutely worth it. Celie is one of my all-time favourite characters. I really should re-read it ...

[Emily, Conterminous Mod]

Jody wrote: "I’d definitely be interested in recommendations too!

Emily, have you read The Color Purple yet? I read it back in 2015 for our very first challenge (back when we started with the POPSUGAR one) and..."

I haven't! I'm not a classics reader (which often makes me a really bad English teacher), but I'm trying to expand, so I'll add it to my TBR! Thanks for the rec!

[Tracy]

The Color Purple is amazing and definitely doesn’t read like a classic. I loved it !!

[Holly]

I decided to do Hillary Clinton's Living History. It's not ethnically or religiously different from me, but it's politically different which I think counts!

[Katie]

I think that's a great approach to this topic, Holly.

[Teresa]

Fever Dream

[Anna]

I chose A Line in the Dark. The main character is Chinese, which isn't very common in YA (but should be more common). She was also from the States, while I'm a white Canadian.

[Matthias]

- What are you reading for this category?
I am reading Ghana Must Go by Taiye Selasi
- Why did you choose this book?
I read one of her short stories, and loved it, so I thought I would check out her debut novel. The cover also says anyone who likes Zadie Smith and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie would love this (and I do, so I have some expectations now).

[Pam]

I am reading Kindred this week. I chose it because II have several GR friends who loved it and I’ve been wanting to read something by the author Octavia E. Butler. It is also a book on my 12+4 SF challenge.

[Jess]

What are you reading for this category?

Why did you choose this book?
I have wanted to read this for a bit. I'm not a huge fan of poetry but I like to try some periodically. Rupi Kaur is Canadian of Punjabi descent which fits the ethnic and cultural differences the prompt requests.

Finished 1/11/18 #2 of 52

[dalex]

Like Melanie (msg 9) I'm "quite cheerfully a lesbian" so this is an easy peasy topic for me - all books by straight men are a go. :lol:

Here are a few recommendations for those of you looking for some glbtq+ books:

General fiction and historical fiction
Everything by Sarah Waters
Everything by Emma Donoghue
Everything by Ali Smith
Carry the One by Carol Anshaw
The Cat Sanctuary by Patrick Gale (and most of his other books also)

Science fiction and fantasy
Solitaire by Kelly Eskridge
The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers
The Unseen World by Liz Moore
An Unkindness of Ghosts by Rivers Solomon
Planetfall by Emma Newman
An Accident of Stars by Foz Meadows
Everything by N.K. Jemisin

And there's this list - Diversity in SFF - that lists authors who identify as glbtq+.

And you could definitely find lots of choices that were nominated for the Tiptree Award, which is given to a work of science fiction or fantasy that best explores & expands gender roles.

Hope that helps!

[Sara]

What are you reading for this category?
I'm reading Ms. Marvel, Vol. 4: Last Days for this prompt.
Why did you choose this book?
To be honest, I just needed an excuse to keep reading this series. :))

[Kathy]

I loved this book. It is so emotional. The author's follow-up, The Sun and Her Flowers, won the Goodreads Award for poetry.

Jessica wrote: "What are you reading for this category?
Why did you choose this book?
I have wanted to read this for a bit. I'm not a huge fan of poetry but I like to try some p..."

[Carol]

A work colleague recommend this so I'm going to give it a go

Sangu Mandanna -

[MN]

I've read Patricia Highsmith, Carol (1952) for this category. It's a beautifully written account of a lesbian relationship.

[Andrea]

What are you reading for this category?
I am reading The Monk of Mokha by Dave Eggers.

Why did you choose this book?
There are several reasons: Eggers' involvement, American Muslim perspective, coffee love, and cover design. I am also really excited about an upcoming author event that I plan to attend.

[Laura]

- What are you reading for this category?
The Voice Inside by Brian Freeman

- Why did you choose this book?
It is written by a Caucasian male and I am pretty sure the lead character is also a Caucasian male (I am a Hispanic female). Plus, I already read and liked the first book in this series.

[Elizabeth]

The Dolocher
By:European P. Douglas
The author is male and his a new to me author as ,plus it's a thriller so I had to pick it up.

[Sheri]

What are you reading for this category?
Rich People Problems

- Why did you choose this book?
Author is male and Asian, I'm white female. I mostly picked it because it's the third book in a series that I wanted to finish. I'm working on reading more books by people of different perspectives, so there's other things that could fit in this prompt, but this was the easiest place to fit this book in particular.

[Serendipity]

I was reading Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic for another challenge and it fitted here - (author is gay and I'm not) so I thought I'd use it. I typically read quite a few titles that I could use for this prompt, but this just happened to be the first book I read this year that didn't fit better in some other category.

[Evelyn]

- What are you reading for this category?


- Why did you choose this book?
The author is African-American (I am Latina) and is the second book that I read from this author.

[GailW]

What are you reading for this category?
Fence by Ila Arab Mehta
Why did you choose this book?
I had needed to read a book of Indian translation for another challenge and the topic/characters interested me very much. Translated from Gujarati, the storyline is very good: poor family from a little village in India wishes their three children to have educations so that they live better than they have had to live. The family is Muslim, in an area that is mostly Hindu. Each one of the children, two sons and a daughter, then proceeds to travel in quite disparate directions. The strength and ambition of the daughter was a great story.

[Shannan]

I'm using The Sun Is Also a Star by Nicola Yoon. The two main characters are a 2nd generation Korean American and a black illegal immigrant from Jamaica. It was really good.

[Katherine]

Stray City
Why did I choose this book?
My husband picked it out for me as it has a cat on the cover! When I started reading it, I realized it could fit in this category.
2.5 stars from me. I enjoyed reading this book, except it got a little "soft" at the end. I would have liked to give it a 3 just for the interesting story line. I found Andrea to be wishy-washy, especially in the last half. Given the subject matter, the story and characters could have been a lot stronger.

[Jennifer]

I listened to the book: Yes, My Accent Is Real: and Some Other Things I Haven't Told You. The author is Indian and reads the audio version himself so that was fun.

[Brittany]

I read Tranny: Confessions of Punk Rock's Most Infamous Anarchist Sellout for this category and I really enjoyed it. If anyone is a music fan, especially of Against Me! it should definitely be read. The book goes through the creation and life of the band along with Laura's transition. It was a very interesting read that put a lot of Against Me!'s music and lyrics into a different perspective.

[Emma]

- What are you reading for this category?

I read The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

- Why did you choose this book?

This was a book I have avoided for a while because of the level of attention it got when it came out. However, when a woman I work with who I would never have expected to pick this up started raving about it, I knew that it would be something I would like.

[Emily]

What are you reading for this category?

Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet

Why did you choose this book?

I started reading it and belatedly realized it fit the prompt. Both the main character and the author are Chinese-American males.

[Perri]

- What are you reading for this category?
The Sun Is Also a Star
- Why did you choose this book?
I read Yoon's other book, Everything, Everything, and really liked it, so thought I'd give this a try. I didn't like it quite as well, but thought it was really good.

[Kim]

- What are you reading for this category?
- Why did you choose this book? I have read 2 other books by this author, and enjoy his work!

[Kim]

Emily wrote: "What are you reading for this category?

Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet

Why did you choose this book?

I started reading it and belatedly realized it fit the prompt. Both ..."

I am reading his new book Love and Other Consolation Prizes. If you like Hotel, you should try this book!

[Breann]

I'm either reading Blackass or Black Deutschland, since I'm a straight white woman and both of these books have black male protagonists (one of which is also gay). As I haven't read them yet, I have no idea how either character identifies in terms of religion.

HOWEVER, I've already read and really enjoyed/appreciated the following books, which may fit the prompt for others in this group who are still looking for options:

Middlesex
Americanah
Reading Lolita in Tehran: A Memoir in Books
Between the World and Me
The Sympathizer
The Vegetarian
Dream of Ding Village
The God of Small Things
The Whale Rider
Behold the Dreamers

[Joy]

- What are you reading for this category?
Jessi's Secret Language by Ann M. Martin.

- Why did you choose this book?
It was the next in the series.

[Joan]

- What are you reading for this category? Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda
- Why did you choose this book? I chose this book for several reasons. The number one reason is that it is another book to bond with my daughter on. It is also a June buddy read on another group and I want to read the book before the DVD comes out.

[Aine]

What are you reading for this category?
Creative Truths in Provincial Policing by Paula Licahtarowicz

Why did you choose this book?
I loved her Lichtarowicz's first book and wanted to see her write about a completely different context. I visited Vietnam a few years ago and enjoyed reading these characters...

[Cheri]

What are you reading for this category?
The Butterfly Mosque: A Young American Woman's Journey to Love and Islam by G. Willow Wilson

Why did you choose this book?
I read one of the author's novels and also her Muslim Wonder Woman comics and was curious about her religious choice.

[Anna]

I read Mortal Danger and Blood Lines by Eileen Wilks in which the protagonist is Lily Yu, a Chinese FBI agent.

[Angie]

- What are you reading for this category? Baked to Death by Dean A. James

- Why did you choose this book? It's the last book in a series of mysteries starring a gay writer living in a cozy New England who also happens to be a vampire. I had read the other three books in the series and wanted to know how the main character's romance ended up.

[Rokkan]

I read The Hate U Give for this one. I didn't so much choose it as have it chosen for me in a different Goodreads group. But it was on the shelf I gave them to choose from, so swings, roundabouts. It's also had a lot of hype because of its content so I was looking to read it eventually any way.

[Bana AZ]

Easy-peasy category since I'm not Caucasian! :D

- What are you reading for this category?
Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo - The main character, Kaz, is a dude, plus the author is American, while I'm a Southeast Asian woman.

- Why did you choose this book?
Because I just finished Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo, book one of this duology, and it was so badass! Plus the ending was kind of a cliff-hanger so I'd really like to know how it turns out in this book.