The star icon signals an award-winning book! Since most books on this page have either won the Lambda Book Award or been a strong contender, the red star generally indicates additional awards / best-selling recognition from other award programs and lists.
The Lambda Literary Book Awards are sponsored by the Lambda Literary Group. The Awards have been in existence since 1989, with recipients announced each June during Pride Month. According to Lambda Literary's website:
"The purpose of the Awards in the early years was to identify and celebrate the best lesbian and gay books in the year of their publication. The Awards gave national visibility to a literature that had established a firm if nascent beachhead through a network of dynamic lesbian and gay publishers and bookstores springing up across America. Since their inception, the Lambda Literary Awards ceremony has consistently drawn an audience representing every facet of publishing. The Awards have ranged over many categories, reflecting the wide spectrum of LGBTQ books, and from the very first year they have made the statement that lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans stories are part of the literature of the nation."
Lambda Literary Awards: Winners & Nominees from 2024 and Earlier
Use the year tabs above to view selected Lambda Award recipients and nominees for recent years. Many of the books we own are in ebook format. If you are off campus, simply login with your ISU credentials and read away! Hard copy books on the lists here are shelved in Parks Library; call numbers are given for these books along with a link to our Quick Search catalog. Clicking the link will show you if the book is already checked out or is available on the shelves.
Selected 2020 Lambda Award Recipients
Selected 2020 Lambda Award Nominees
Selected 2019 Lambda Award Recipients
Selected 2019 Lambda Award Nominees
Selected 2018 Lambda Award Recipients
Selected 2018 Lambda Award Nominees
Hi! My plan is to move the "2017 and Earlier" Lambda Book Award recipients and finalists here to create an easier to use list; haven't gotten it totally finished yet, so please do consult the list elsewhere on this page!
"We, as individuals devoted to reading and as librarians and publishers responsible for disseminating ideas, wish to assert the public interest in the preservation of the freedom to read."
Follow the link below to read the full statement.