How do I keep going when my one support person isn't there for me anymore?

Today we meet Edwin Santos Lepiz and we’re talking about the queer book that saved his life: History Is All You Left Me by Adam Silvera. And Adam joins us for the conversation!

Edwin is a gay first-generation Mexican-American graduate student at the University of Utah College of Social Work. Edwin is pursuing a Master of Social Work degree to pursue work at the intersection of language justice and suicide prevention utilizing stories such as those found in today's book as a tool to meet this goal.

Adam Silvera is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of They Both Die at the End, The First to Die at the End, More Happy Than Not, History Is All You Left Me, the Infinity Cycle trilogy, and the What If It's Us duology with Becky Albertalli. His novels have received many starred reviews. He previously worked in children’s publishing and bookselling.

History Is All You Left Me is a novel in which Griffin's first love and ex-boyfriend, Theo, dies in a drowning accident. Even though Theo had moved to California for college, Griffin never doubted Theo would come back to him when the time was right. But now, the future he's been imagining for himself has gone far off course. The only person who truly understands his heartache is Theo's new boyfriend, Jackson. Griffin's losing himself in his obsessive compulsions and destructive choices, and the secrets he's been keeping are tearing him apart. If Griffin is ever to rebuild his future, he must first confront his history, every last heartbreaking piece in the puzzle of his life.

Connect with Edwin and Adam
linkedin: linkedin.com/in/edwinsantoslepiz/
instagram: @esantoslepiz

website: adamsilvera.com
Bluesky: bsky.app/profile/adamsilvera.bsky.social
instagram: @adamsilvera

Our Bookshop
Visit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook

Buy your own copy of History Is All You Left Me: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781641293174

Become an Associate Producer!
Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook

Credits
Host/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson

Quatrefoil Library
Quatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link:

It's a new year, so we hope you enjoy our new format and theme song. Be sure to support us on Patreon, buy the books we feature on the show through our bookshop, or read them through Quatrefoil Library's free e-library. Links in the shows and on our website.

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Is the loss of innocence the beginning of compassion and wisdom?

Today we meet Dean Backus and we’re talking about the queer book that saved his life: Harriet the Spy by Louise Fitzhugh.

Dean is a playwright, essayist, screenwriter, journalist, filmmaker, and high school English teacher. He is the author of Darts and Flowers and the forthcoming The Deep End of the Pool.

Harriet the Spy is a timeless YA classic by queer author Louise Fitzhugh. In it, Harriet M. Welsch is a spy. In her notebook, she writes down everything she knows about everyone, even her classmates and her best friends. Then Harriet loses track of her notebook, and it ends up in the wrong hands. Before she can stop them, her friends have read the always truthful, sometimes awful things she's written about each of them. Will Harriet find a way to put her life and her friendships back together?

Connect with Dean
website: deanbackusauthor.com
instagram: @deanbackusauthor
facebook: facebook.com/deanbackusauthor

Our Bookshop
Visit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook

Buy your own copy of Harriet The Spy: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780440416791

Become an Associate Producer!
Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook

Credits
Host/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson

Quatrefoil Library

Quatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1

It's a new year, so we hope you enjoy our new format and theme song. Be sure to support us on Patreon, buy the books we feature on the show through our bookshop, or read them through Quatrefoil Library's free e-library. Links in the shows and on our website.

Support the show

We have a special Christmas episode of This Queer Book Saved My Life dropping next week!

Today, Once Upon a Crime Books presents 7 Minutes in Book Heaven, the podcast where we interview LGBTQ authors about the new books they have coming out for us to love and cuddle up with.

Once Upon a Crime Books is an independent bookstore specializing in mystery fiction. Located in Uptown Minneapolis, you can shop in their store Monday through Saturday 11am – 5:30pm. Or, visit their website! There, you can browse all of their books, from new releases to classic mysteries. Visit them online: onceuponacrimebooks.com

In this new episode, Once Upon a Crime Books introduces us to Lev AC Rosen and his new novel: Rough Pages which is available to buy in in-store or on their website.

Lev Rosen writes books for people of all ages, including the Evander Mills series, which began with the Macavity Award winning Lavender House (Best Book of the Year from Buzzfeed, Library Journal, and others) and continues with The Bell in the Fog, (Publisher’s Weekly Editor’s Choice). The second Tennessee Russo adventure, the fourth Evander Mills mystery, and another YA rom-com will all be out in 2025. He lives in NYC with his husband and a very small cat. You can find him online at LevACRosen.com and @LevACRosen

Buy Rough Pages
Visit Once Upon a Crime Books in-person or buy online: https://onceuponacrimebooks.com/book/9781250322449

Connect with Lev AC Rosen
website: levacrosen.com
facebook: facebook.com/LevACRosen
instagram: @LevACRosen

Credits
Presented by: Once Upon a Crime Books
Host/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Theme music: Summer Mood by lesfm

It's a new year, so we hope you enjoy our new format and theme song. Be sure to support us on Patreon, buy the books we feature on the show through our bookshop, or read them through Quatrefoil Library's free e-library. Links in the shows and on our website.

Support the show