Sapphic Books You Need to Read

So, you want to read some sapphic books?

This article features sapphic books with both sapphic leads and sapphic romances.

Oftentimes good sapphic books can be hard to find. Why is that? It's certainly not because they're not around. It's also not because there isn't an abundance of people looking for them. So why?

Sapphic individuals face the double bind of being both fetishized and ignored. Lesbian relationships are often viewed under a patriarchal and homophobic gaze that posits them as being for the consumption of men. Lesbian people are often seen as sexual objects rather than as humans. Straight people exploit lesbianism by fetishizing its presentation while ignoring its lived realities. Sapphic relationships are often seen as less serious than any other relationship. This is because of many, quite frankly bullsh*t reasons, but primarily, society finds it impossible to define womanhood beyond the context of men. Women are often described in relation to men, "She's so-and-so's wife" or, "So-and-so's sister", so when women aren't referred to in reference to a man it threatens the patriarchy's understanding of womanhood. This is true for nonbinary lesbians and sapphics too, there's no escaping the exploitative gaze of patriarchy.

Sapphic existence and books are a radical response to patriarchy and heteronormativity; they often can't exist without becoming politicized. Sapphic love deserves to be represented on its own terms.

The popularity of queer books has BOOMED into the public sphere. However, most of the books that are being talked about and praised only feature white cis gay men. It's infuriating! Women are still being ignored and sapphic books are being pushed to the back burner, especially ones featuring or written by queer BIPOC.

Recently, on vacation, I met with a friend of a friend who, when the subject of lesbian books arose, said, "Oh, I've never read anything with a lesbian in it, but I've read gay books, so like... I get the struggle." There's a lot to unpack there. But, let's just talk about one of the issues at hand: people tend to 'check boxes' when it comes to reading a diverse array of materials. The queer box gets 'checked' after reading one mlm book and it never gets revisited.

I'm not trying to demonize mlm fiction or minimize its importance, but what I'm trying to do is point to the trend of all queer books being boiled down to mlm. In writing this piece I want to highlight some of my favorite sapphic books to help boost them into the public gaze. I believe this work is important, so if you want to share any of your favorite sapphic books please comment them. These books deserve attention and sapphic people deserve good representation! Non-sapphic people need to get on board too! So, that being said, let me introduce you to your next favorite read.

1. Patricia Wants to Cuddle

Genres: Horror, Comedy, Fiction, Adult

I want to kick this list off with an oddball.

Have you ever wished that the contestants on the Bachelor were terrorized by a female Bigfoot? Yes? Well, then this is the book for you.

Patricia Wants to Cuddle is an absolute blast from start to finish. It contains a silly narrative that's only made better by its absurdity. It's guaranteed to pull you out of a reading slump and launch you straight into absurd lesbian fiction. It's a must-read as far as I'm concerned.

Rating: 4.5/5 stars

2. The Lesbiana's Guide to Catholic School

Genres: Young Adult, Fiction, Romance, Contemporary

This book follows Yamilet Flores, a young Mexican American girl navigating Catholoic school while also navigating her sexuality. This story is a bold one of love, family, and friendship.

This is the kind of book I wish I had when I was younger because of how poignant and compassionate it is. A must read for any teens looking to find a bit of themselves within the pages.

Rating: 5/5 stars

3. The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo

Genres: Romance, Historical Fiction, Adult

So, we all knew this was coming. I can't make this list without putting The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo on here. Firstly, it's my favorite book. But most importantly, it's a banging good one.

The narrative follows world famous actress and icon Evelyn Hugo and her glamorous Hollywood life as told by Monique Grant, a journalist given the once in a lifetime opportunity to interview Evelyn for a tell-all. Evelyn's love life is notoriously messy, but readers will quickly find her true love story to be intimate and heartachingly endearing.

Rating: 5/5 stars

4. On a Sunbeam

Genres: Graphic Novel, Young Adult, Romance, Space

This is one of my favorite graphic novels I've ever had the pleasure of reading. The visuals are stunning and the story is a heartwarming testimate to found family.

This book follows a crew of lesbian and gender queer individuals on their adventures in space. This breathtaking book creates a story of love and finding ones purpose with the most ethereal visuals and is a must read for fans of She-ra or lesbians finding themselves in space.

Rating: 4/5 stars

5. The Priory of the Orange Tree

Genres: High Fantasy, Adult

I know, I know. Another predictable choice. This one's just so good at what it does (fantasy with intense world building) that it felt wrong not to include it.

The Priory of the Orange Tree follows multiple characters across an epic storyline of queendom, romance, magic, and disaster.

Rating: 3.75/5 stars

6. Sirens & Muses

Genres: Contemporary, Academia, Adult, Art

This is the book on this list that I've read most recently and I was terribly sad when it ended.

This story follows four artists and their flaws. They're all connected by the elite Wrynn College of Art, an institution that pits them against each other just as much as it bonds them together. This is a story of rivals, lovers, and intrigue. If you like academic rivals, to reluctant peers, to friends, to lovers then this one is the one for you!

Rating: 4/5 stars

Shoutout: The Magic Fish

Genre: Graphic Novel, Young Adult, Historical Fiction

This one contains both mlm and wlw relationships. I've included it here because even though the primary focus of the book isn't on lesbians, lesbians are crucial to its storytelling and the lesbian storyline is featured nearly as prominantly as the gay storyline. I think it's an important read and one that needs to be shared.

This heartbreakingly poignant graphic novel follows Tiến Phong, a queer second generation American Vietnamese teenager who's trying to come out to his mother as gay whilst simultaneously teaching her English. The story tells tales of queer love and generational hardhip all coming together to tell a sentimental and important story about identity and family.

Rating: 5/5 stars

I hope you've enjoyed this very incomplete list! I hoped to share a few of my personal favorites spanning a wide array of genres and age groups. I hope you found one or two to be of your liking! Please add any of your favorite sapphic books in the comments!