Boy meets Boy

Gay Themed Teen Lit
Gay stories are important for both LGBT kids and straight kids alike. One way librarians can raise the profile of LGBT teen books is to feature it in their library, front and center, on National Day of Silence. This is a teen-led day of activism in which high-school and college students silence their voices to demonstrate the culture of silence forced upon LGBT kids, through intimidation, violence, or simply a lack of support (this includes seeing themselves represented in literature).
Last year, at our high school of 685 students, 300 students participated in the Day of Silence. It was quite an event. For three weeks prior to Day of Silence, I displayed every book in the library we owned with gay themes, characters, or authors and they circulated as well as our new books. If we choose to put the literature out there for people, many will read it regardless of their orientation. The book Boy Meets Boy was a big hit during the 2009-2010 school year primarily through word of mouth, and because I would recommend it to the kids when they came in. It's one of my daughter's favorite books.