The Over the Rainbow committee of Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Round Table (GLBTRT) of the American Library Association announced last week that Chen Chen's When I Grow Up I Want to Be a List of Further Possibilities has been selected as a top twelve title in their annual Over the Rainbow List for 2018. The Over the Rainbow List includes the committee's top recommendations of books by GLBT authors.
George Martinez writes on behalf of the committee: "After much reading and deliberation, we chose 39 titles in the category of literature and 42 in non-fiction to be included in the complete 2018 Over the Rainbow list. This year, due to the increase in GLBT publishing, we are presenting two top ten lists one for non-fiction, and one for literature." When I Grow Up I Want to Be a List of Further Possibilities is included in the top-ten selections for the literature list:
"Chen’s book of poetry explores his life as a queer Chinese immigrant to the United States. His poems investigate relationships, sexuality, and family using wonderful imagery that invokes various feelings that are sometimes funny, romantic, and sad."
The GLBTRT also selected When I Grow Up I Want to Be a List of Further Possibilities as one of four Barbara Gittings Literature Award Honor Books for the annual Stonewall Book Awards. The Stonewall Book Awards are the first and most enduring award for GLBT books published in the United States and are awarded annually by the American Library Association's Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Round Table. One winner and four honor titles were selected for 2018's Barbara Gittings Literature Award.
Read the full 2018 Over the Rainbow list here and the press release for the Stonewall Book Awards here.
