The Letter Q: Queer Writers' Notes to their Younger Selves [Hardcover]

Sarah Moon (Author), James Lecesne (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1, 2012

Life-saving letters from a glittering wishlist of top authors.

If you received a letter from your older self, what do you think it would say? What do you wish it would say?

That the boy you were crushing on in History turns out to be gay too, and that you become boyfriends in college? That the bully who is making your life miserable will one day become so insignificant that you won't remember his name until he shows up at your book signing?

In this anthology, sixty-three award-winning authors such as Michael Cunningham, Amy Bloom, Jacqueline Woodson, Gregory Maguire, David Levithan, and Armistead Maupin make imaginative journeys into their pasts, telling their younger selves what they would have liked to know then about their lives as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, or Transgendered people. Through stories, in pictures, with bracing honesty, these are words of love and understanding, reasons to hold on for the better future ahead. They will tell you things about your favorite authors that you never knew before. And they will tell you about yourself.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Praise for The Letter Q

"[T]houghtful, humorous, and moving...Read together, the letters become a powerful refrain." —Publishers Weekly

*"[A] lovely, often funny, and always heartfelt book...that may save lives." —Booklist, starred review

"Offering encouragement, comfort, advice, valor, and love, they create a vivid rainbow of political perspectives, personal anecdotes, and wisdom." —Elle

"[W]ith its repeated exhortations to relax more and worry less, this book might be a life-saver for some-and could function as an author list, as well, for teens wanting to read more about People Like Us." —Horn Book

"The Letter Q is the most recent book addressing the issue and sheds the formalities of speaking to a broad audience you've never met. It is instead an anthology of letters from LGBT writers to their younger selves. The result is an intimate experience where the authors address specifics and call themselves out on their own faults." —The Advocate

About the Author

Sarah Moon is a teacher, writer, and translator. She lives and works in Brooklyn, New York.

James Lecesne is an actor, writer, and activist. His Academy Award–winning short film, Trevor, inspired the founding of The Trevor Project (www.thetrevorproject.org).

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Age Range: 12 and up
  
• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Arthur A. Levine Books (May 1, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0545399327
• ISBN-13: 978-0545399326
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.8 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #100,145 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #9 in Books > Gay & Lesbian > Nonfiction > Coming Out
  • #33 in Books > Teens > Health, Mind & Body > Sexuality

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Powerful. May 15, 2012

By Stevie

Format:Hardcover

I began to cry while reading page 3 on my subway commute home. I very rarely tear up at all, and I absolutely hate crying in public. For the first time I didn't seem to care much. I couldn't stop reading, and with the support of the writers in this book I didn't care what anyone thought of me. I was not alone, but in the good company of incredible people who put this book together.

The notes in The Letter Q are inspirational, funny and above all powerful.

Definitely one to have on the shelf, and worth keeping a backup copy on hand to pass along to any young person you think might need it.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A Guide for the `Misbegotten' June 14, 2012

By Grady Harp HALL OF FAMETOP 50 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Hardcover

THE LETTER Q is a book of importance socially, especially now that the world is growing into the stage of enlightenment as far as LGBT issues are concerned. After the agony of Mathew Shepard, Larry King etc etc etc many authors are speaking out about the struggles of youth who happen to be gay. In this book editor Sarah Moon has stated in response to the question as to why she felt this book was important, `I'm a teacher, and I have had certain students who've been going through things. And, there are things I've wanted to say to them in a way I never would inside or even outside of the classroom. I was talking to my girlfriend and I said, "I wish I could just write a letter and have that be a book." And she said, "You can't do that, but you could write a book of letters.'

And that is how this anthology of writings by some of our most important and impressive writers of the day came about. In this anthology, sixty-four award-winning authors and illustrators such as Michael Cunningham, Amy Bloom, Jacqueline, Woodson, Terrence McNally, Gregory Maguire, David Levithan, and Armistead Maupin, make imaginative journeys into their pasts, telling their younger selves what they would have liked to know then about their lives as lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender people. Through stories, in pictures, with bracing honesty, these are words of love, messages of understanding, reasons to hold on for the better future ahead. They will tell you things about your favorite authors that you never knew before. And they will tell you about yourself.

The question was asked "If I knew then what I know now..." If you could write a letter to your younger self, what would it say? In The Letter Q, today's best queer authors offer hard-earned, heartfelt advice about growing up, coming out and coming into their own to the people who need it most: themselves, as kids and teens. 'In these inspiring pages, Christopher Rice warns his younger self to avoid the siren song of the club scene, while Amy Bloom tells herself not to shun one-night stands. Graphic novelists Maurice Vellekoop and Paige Braddock provide pictures as powerful as the words. Michael Cunningham boils it all down to "Worry less. Use what the world has given you." It's not a time machine, but it's the next best thing.

Hopefully this book finds its way into the hands of our youth as well as teachers and parents and maybe, just maybe, as a result we will note a softening of antipathies toward those once considered to be `misbegotten' socially. Grady Harp, June 12

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Easy read! Poignant! July 23, 2012

By Joe

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

This book is a great read that appeals to gay people of all ages. This book needs to be on the shelves of high school and public libraries everywhere. When I was struggling as a teenager I would have loved to have seen this book and hear how people, just like me, really turned out to be happy, healthy, and successful. This book is very easy to read as the letters are of reasonable length and interspersed are some great comics making the same point.