Happy Wednesday, bibliophiles!
Here in the U.S., September 16th-23rd is Bisexual Visibility Week, and September 23rd is Bisexual Visibility Day!
To me, visibility—true visibility—for the bi+ community is more vital than ever right now. In contrast to decades ago, when bisexuality wasn’t in the public conversation, today, it seems that bisexuality has enjoyed a more nuanced mainstream understanding. Yet this visibility came with the price of misunderstanding and stigma, much of which continues today. It’s already a handful coming from straight people, but what breaks my heart the most is when it comes from within the LGBTQ+ community. Sadly, it’s more common than you’d think. It manifests in a lot of sinister ways within the queer community, from the stereotype of bisexual women only dating men to the widespread jokes this year in particular about bisexual people only being allowed to celebrate pride for half the month. Sure, they may not be all that sinister on the surface, but when they repackage the same stereotypes about bisexual people (bisexuals only being bi for attention and bisexuals being “less queer”), they become regurgitations of the same demons that we’ve been facing for decades. And don’t even get me started on the stereotyping, particularly from lesbians and gay men, about how bisexuals are somehow co-opting queerness by exhibiting same sex-attraction or that we’re somehow “unclean” because we may have dated other genders. Especially considering that bisexual people are more likely to consider or commit suicide than their lesbian or gay peers, as well as reporting higher rates of depression and sexual assault, this rhetoric always has a consequence.
When did we all forget that we should all be on the same side? I’m so tired of saying something to the effect of the last paragraph in these posts, but this rampant biphobia—and infighting—just keeps happening. Whether bisexuality/biphobia is the issue or not, all of this casual queerphobia only serves to divide us further. There are real, present threats to the LGBTQ+ community, especially here in the U.S., that are so much more pressing than some fabricated issue of who’s more queer and who doesn’t deserve to be queer. Even if the issue was remedied, we should be quick to remember that after the word transgender, the next word that the government tried to erase from Stonewall National Monument’s website was bisexual. We need to focus on the real, tangible threats to our community, not on pointless squabbling that only makes enemies of each other.
To all of the fellow bisexuals who may be reading this: you are bisexual enough, you are queer enough, and you do not have to justify your identity to anyone. When I embraced my bisexuality in my teens, I felt freer than ever before. That’s exactly what claiming this identity should be all about: the idea that you cannot be boxed in by a society placing you on a single track for the gender you should be attracted to. In a perfect world, it should bring you that freedom, and never fear. We can all work towards that world, someday.
For my lists from previous years, click below:
Let’s begin, shall we?
🩷💜💙THE BOOKISH MUTANT’S BOOKS FOR BISEXUAL VISIBILITY WEEK (2026 EDITION)🩷💜💙
FANTASY:
- Call Forth a Fox – Markelle Grabo | YA | high fantasy, romance | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
- The Dawnhounds (Endsong, #1) – Sascha Stronach | Adult | POC, romance, biopunk | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
- Full Shift – Jennifer Dugan and Kit Seaton | YA | urban fantasy, paranormal fantasy, graphic novel, romance | ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
SCIENCE FICTION:
- Love Galaxy – Sierra Branham | Adult | space opera, romance, mystery | ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
- A Swift and Sudden Exit – Nico Vicenty | Adult | time travel, romance | ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
- Failure to Communicate – Kaia Sønderby | Adult | space opera, disability | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
- Red Star Rebels – Amie Kaufman | YA | space opera, romance | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
REALISTIC/HISTORICAL FICTION:
- According to Plan – Christen Randall | YA | disability, romance | ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
- The Golden Boy’s Guide to Bipolar – Sonido Reyes | YA | POC, disability, coming-of-age | ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
- The Very Nice Box – Laura Blackett & Eve Gleichmann | Adult | contemporary, mystery/thriller | ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
- Blue-Skinned Gods – SJ Sindu | Adult | POC, literary fiction | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
- The Girls I’ve Been – Tess Sharpe | YA | thriller, romance | ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK! Have you read any of these books, and if so, what did you think of them? What are some of your favorite books by bisexual authors? Let me know in the comments!
Today’s song:
That’s it for this recommendations post! Have a wonderful rest of your day, and take care of yourselves!
