I remember when Juno Dawson announced this anthology. I do not even know how long ago it was, but I remember how excited I was: too often our access to queer love stories have been dominated by a market by straight women, for straight women. But not anymore.
Proud is a collection from authors across the LGBTQ+ spectrum; people of different races, writing in different styles - prose, poetry, even illustrations to accompany each entry. The sheer vastness of the range that they all held made me proud, made me revel in how different we all are and how wonderful that is.
That is not to say that, like most other anthologies, Proud did not fall down the same cracks but that is something that is always to be expected; certain writing styles were not to my taste, whilst others have made me shake in anticipation of reading more from its author.
Case in point: Simon James Green’s tale of the two boys having their first kiss next to a penguin enclosure (sign me up) made everything inside me bubble up with joy and even though a month has gone by since I read it, I am still seriously mulling over whether or not to get Alice Oseman’s accompanying illustration tattooed somewhere on my body.
Overall, this was a beautiful and important collection of work; offering more diversity than I have seen in all of my years of reading. It provided a wonderfully queer platform for both established authors and unpublished new talent, and just looking at the book, both out in the wild and in the pride of place that it has gotten on my bookshelf, my heart sings just a little bit.

It should be impossible for one person to cry so many happy tears over a single book but here I am sobbing away. I'm not sure I even know how to review this anthology. Every single story moved me, I adored all the characters and the art work gave it that little bit of extra something. This is a book I wish I'd been able to read ten years ago and I'm so happy that it's out for people to read it now. Proud made my heart sing with joy and I truly loved every page.

Proud by various authors is an anthology of YA writers celebrating their queer identity. It is a valuable contribution to the queer LGBT+ canon. But, with hindsight, I don’t remember much about this work, nothing stands out. It’s worth a look, especially if you are a YA reader. But, it didn’t blow me away.

3.5 stars

Proud is an anthology made up of short stories, poetry and artwork.
The contributors are LGBTQ+ authors/illustrators, some of them new talent, and others established.
Proud was compiled by Juno Dawson.

I really liked the idea of an anthology featuring LGBTQ+ stories/poems from LGBTQ+ creators.
There was a good variety of stories - some of which I enjoyed more than others, but there were none that I didn't like.
There was artwork after each story/piece of poetry featuring a scene from the story/poem, which I thought was a nice idea.
I found this anthology to be refreshing, thought-provoking and unique. I'm glad that I read it and I would recommend it to anyone looking to read more LGBTQ+ content.

Overall this was an enjoyable read.

This is not my usual read but I found it a wonderful collection of stories and poems (some better than others) embracing LGBTQ+. More aimed at teenagers/young adults than the older generation, I still found the stories to be uplifting.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced read copy of this book in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.

Thanks to Netgalley and Stripes publishing for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This anthology, edited by Juno Dawson, contains twelve works and illustrations created by authors and the illustrators who all identify as part of the LGBTQ+ community.
Usually in an anthology, I find a couple of pieces stand out and then the rest tend to be more forgettable. However, I enjoyed all the works in this collection. My personal favourites were Penguins by Simon James Green and The instructor by Jess Vallance. Definitely a good read which I highly recommend.

My first publisher event of the year was Stripes’ EqualiTea. I was excited to be given a copy of LGBTQ+ anthology Proud, edited by Juno Dawson. It’s full of stories, art and poems from authors and illustrators who are part of the community, including Tanya Byrne, Moïra Fowley-Doyle, David Levithan, Simon James Green and many more.

Continue reading this review over on Pretty Books: https://prettybooks.co.uk/2019/05/05/mini-reviews-the-paper-hearts-society-proud-the-weight-of-water/

A strong work focused around LGBTQ+ youth and how to have pride and faith in yourself and in your own identity. Some stories had their strengths and their weaknesses but globally it was a wonderfully compiled anthology. I find some of my favorite authors in it such as Moïra Fowley Doyle (with a beautiful story centered around love message, graph, and the harsh reality of fight for LGBTQ+ equality and marriage right). I also really loved the retelling of Pride and Prejudice with two lesbian teenagers and a fight against slut-shaming leading to a happy end. To sum up, it was a beautiful call to pride and activism and to love yourself, no matter what

A collection of short stories with LGBTQ themes. Enjoyed reading this book. It was nice to be able to have a variety of nice stories to go through all containing one or more LGBTQ theme, whether it was focusing on coming out, legalising gay marriage, etc. Would recommend

A great collection of stories from authors who know exactly what they're talking about. A book I definitely wish I had when I was younger and figuring out my own sexuality. I was definitely a fan of some of the stories more than others but I firmly believe that each story will touch a young reader in a way it was intended to.

This is a book which should definitely be widely available, in libraries, schools.....anywhere and everywhere that young people (and their families, friends - and people who aren't or don't have children for that matter!) might potentially be.

It is exactly the kind of material, which is inclusive of a variety of sexuality and gender, that we need in order to encourage more people to be open to and accepting of the glorious spectrum of identity which exists within humanity - and it's extremely accessible.

On the surface, 'Proud' is a short book containing a collection of short stories and poetry (written by various authors) about life as LGBTQ+ for a teenage/YA readership.

At heart, this book could be so much more - a life line, warmth and acceptance, help in understanding one's own feelings or explaining them to others, or a way to feel not quiet so alone.

All of the work in this book is enjoyable and there are some really lovely pieces, filled to the brim with love, friendship and acceptance.

Seriously, everyone should read 'Proud' and, to quote the last lines of a poem from the book ('How To Come Out As Gay' by Dean Atta):
"Remember you have the right to be proud.
Remember you have the right to be you."

This is an amazing collection of short stories following characters with a mix of gender and sexual orientations following themes such as coming out and acceptance. This is such an inspiring and uplifting anthology and I highly recommend it to everyone.

Some of my favourite short stories in this were Penguins, On The Run and The Phoenix’s Fault.

Overall, I loved this and gave it 4 out of 5 stars.

Hello it’s your friendly neighbourhood queer, here with another LGBTQ+ recommendation. Yeah you heard it, recommendation! Though I didn’t give it a full five stars, I did love this book! Let’s dive into why I loved it (and also why I didn’t).

So, Proud is an anthology, which means it’s not just one story, but instead contains multiple (shorter) stories. This book basically coupled writers with illustraters in order to let you feel even more connected to the story and it’s characters.

I haven’t made it a secret that I absolutely adore LGBTQ+ books and I was super excited when I got approved for an ARC on Netgalley! I didn’t have the time to read it in one go, but since the book comes out tomorrow (!!) I knew I had to finish it and write a review soon. Which wasn’t a problem since I loved it so much.

Every story is centered about different character with a (mostly) different sexuality. it covers m/m and f/f relationships, trans characters (enby included), a bi character, and coming out of the closet in general. See what’s missing? Exactly. I didn’t notive it t the time, but a conversation with a friend made me aware that it doesn’t cover asexuality. This anthology, which covers multiple sexualities, some even multiple times, doesn’t have an asexual character (honestly I wasn’t happy with how was dealt with the bi character but that’s a whole other story). I get that in a normal book, with a minimum of 200 pages, you can’t cover every sexuality. But this book has 12 stories!! It’s unacceptable to me that none of them are about an asexual character.

It’s not just because I want to have my friends represented in this book, or just any gay book. But think of the people that don’t know how they identify, that read these books to figure out who they are, and I don’t think any asexuals will find out they’re actually asexual without having proper representation. Fix this people! It’s 2019! Can we have an anthology that actually covers all big sexualites? And if possible also some smaller ones?

But to go back to what was in the book, I really enjoyed all the different stories, as well as different styles and the amazing illustrations. I think my favourite story is eiter ‘I hate Darcy Pemberley’ or ‘The Instructor’. But all of the stories are sweet and carry a strong message. The last story is about coming out and it resonated so much with me. I might dedicate a whole post to it and mybe talk about how I came out and how I dealt with my family. I really think this is an incredibly important book, I really hope you all read it.

Proud is a compilation of own voice poems, stories and art from incredible LGBTQ+ authors and artists that covers a range of topics that face the community. Self discovery, coming out, rights and equality, love, discrimination, and existing in a heteronormative society.
The range of styles and voices mean there really is something for everyone.

Proud is everything I needed deep in my soul. It told me I was home, I was accepted, that the me I am is the me I should be. Each of the stories and poems were so beautiful.

I hate Darcy Pemberly. A modern lesbian pride and prejudice, the first time I’ve really felt connected to that story.
The Phoenix’s fault. Showing the pressure of traditions and how love is equal and should be treated as such.
The courage of dragons. A D&D group who use their skills in a school revolution of non binary and inclusion.
Penguins. Oh penguins. I remember the story in the news of the gay penguins and how they wanted a family of their own. As if coming out wasn’t hard enough without penguins getting there first.
Love poems to the city. Marriage equality, is the sanctity of marriage too sacred for everyone when those who have it desecrate it so?

This is an anthology of short stories (and the occasional poem), each with an accompnaying illustration. Every single piece in here is about queer people, and by queer people.

I adored it.

Full disclosure, I requested this solely for the illustration by Alice Oseman, but almost every single other piece in this book was an absolute treat!! My favourites were probably the Asian-inspired fantasy with two childhood friends realising that there's a reason why they don't want to marry the Emperor, highschool au Pride and Prejudice with lesbians, and the DnD themed one with an enby protag. Honestly, though? You could ask me again in a couple of hours and I'd probably give you different answers. Even the ones that I didn't love, I still enjoyed.

There's a wide variety of genres and identities represented in here, I'm pretty sure that there's something for everyone. I highly recommend it.

Proud is an anthology of short stories and art by queer YA creators, both established and emerging. Compiled by Juno Dawson, the range of styles featured in these twelve stories is as broad as the identities represented within them. There's poetry, fantasy, romance, tragedy, sport, comedy, magic realism, music, Dungeons & Dragons, activism and a lesbian retelling of Pride and Prejudice set in an American high school.

Something, I'm sure you'd agree, for everyone.

Cythia So's "The Phoenix's Fault" - in which a Chinese lantern-maker's daughter follows her phoenix to world of possibility - and Moira Fowley-Doyle's "Love Poems To The City" - a magical-realist not-love story set in Dublin during the build up to the Marriage Equality referendum - were the stand outs for me. David Levithan's "As The Philadelphia Queer Youth Choir Sings Katie Perry's 'Firework'..." was one of the more stylistically interesting pieces - internal monologues of each of the members of the titular choir while they performed, flitting back and forth between characters with each paragraph. And as a music obsessive, I related strongly to Tanya Byrne's protagonist in "Almost Certain", and her use of music as a force for creating community and healing (it also helped that this story was set in my local city!).

I really enjoyed this collection, and have already been recommending it to my students.

I received a copy of Proud in exchange for an honest review, so thanks NetGalley and Little Tiger Group.

Proud is an anthology of short stories, poetry, and accompanying art from some of the most current LGBTQ+ authors around. Exploring themes of love and acceptance, discrimination and equality, Proud tackles what it means to be LGBTQ+ in this day and age. Yes, it’s hard, and yes, it’s trying, but it’s beautiful and it’s happy and it’s a part of who we are. And Juno Dawson is here to round up the authors who can show that to us best.

There is nothing this collection of short stories doesn’t have. You have gay penguins. You have fake driving instructors. You have lottery wins. You have pure friendships, and cute relationships, current affairs such as Ireland’s referendum on gay marriage, and of course, a whole lot of angst. And a whole lot of love.

Of course there are going to be stories you don’t enjoy as much, characters you don’t relate to or writing styles that grate on you, but you can just skip right through to the next one and find something that will work for you! This is such a beautifully diverse collection of queer stories that it feels like it really does cover almost everything. I also really enjoyed Dawson’s foreword, as it hits home while in your little bubble of life (or at least in mine) it might feel like we’re over most of the hurdles about gay marriage or LBGTQ+ love, that’s not the reality for so many people.

And even if these people are treated with the love and respect they deserve, there is still a massive underrepresentation of them in the general media – including books. Yes, I think YA fiction is one of the most diverse genres out there, but we still need more. And this is a wonderful collection for when you might just need to know that you are represented, you are seen, and you can find yourself in fiction.

So, go forth and read! Proud is out now

4 out of 5 stars

Rebecca

Juno delivers a wonderful foreword and introduction, that is a stark reminder of how far things have come in 30 years. The introduction also gives us as the read a reminder of the challenges still faced including the fact that some LGBTQ+ authors and stories have their books banned.

This anthology contains twelve short stories and each of this story has an illustration created especially for it. This collection is heart-warming, engaging, powerful and personal, and explore parts of the LGBTQ+ community.

The stories span different genres from humorous tales of gay penguins to fantasy stories of phoenixes who dare to be different. As each story focuses on different characters of different orientations, as they figure out what it means to be a queer teen in today's society. There are gay, bi, lesbian, trans, queer, and questioning characters, and it was so easy to relate and invest in every single one of them.

We have characters from all kinds of backgrounds and interests from people living in council blocks to D&D nerds living out magical fantasies at school. Some stories are about coming out, some are about finding acceptance, and some are about finding friendship and romance. The whole collection is so uplifting and important.

If you get a chance to read a copy of this beautiful anthology please do. The introduction felt like a call to action, to encourage and support all of the wonderful LGBTQ+ authors and writers. I can't put into words how empowering this book is.

I LOVED IT, after seeing the cover release at YALC 2018 i was so hyped for this book as i love Juno Dawson and many of the collaborators. The short stories , poems and artwork are amazing, emotional and funny.

The one one i was most looking forward to before release was PENGUINS by Simon James Green with  artwork by Alice Oseman as they're two of my favourite authors. They both lived up to my expectations. Penguins was a great story about two penguins that fall in love at the local zoo who are both male. Cam's feelings towards the penguins and how he uses them to depict what he wants in life is written beautifully. The ending is the perfect romantic climax to a wonderful storyMy favourite unexpected story was a close call between ON THE RUN by Kay staples which is about a boy called Nicholas coming to understand if he wants to change gender , and The other team by Michael lee Richardson about a football team thats not very good but all the players are part of the LGBTQ+ community and how they all stand up for each other when it comes to playing against a rude team.

My unexpected favourite artwork was by Frank Duffy to accompany the story called ALMOST CERTAIN by Tanya Byrne. This story and artwork features a lesbian relationship that develops after a tragic death. The reason i love this artwork so much is its simplistic and shows the darkness they are feeling as well as the hope thats about to start

.I would definitely recommend anyone to read this beautiful anthology even if you're just a friendly ally as it says in the book.

Thank you Netgalley and Stripes Publishing for providing me an ARC of this book, in exchange of an honest review.

Proud in an AMAZING anthology I want to give to queer kids everywhere!

Besides being so good, combining stories and art by queer authors and artists about queer characters, Proud is a really important book, that celebrates queer identities all around the spectrum - and by that I mean stories about different sexualities and gender identities, not only about gay or lesbian characters, which is a huge positive, in my view.

Aside from that, these stories aren't just contemporary fiction about being proud of who you are. It's the majority, I must say, but there's also a retelling and a fantasy story. And they're not all narrative fiction, there's three pieces of poetry as well - the one by Dean Atta especially powerful, in my opinion.

About the art, it was good. There are a few pieces I liked more, others I liked less and my favourite stories don't have my favourite pieces of art and vice-versa. However, think it's a good complement to the book, turning into a celebration of queer art. Nonetheless, since the book tried to join writing and drawing/painting, it would have made so much sense to have a short comic and that is something I missed (maybe a suggestion for Proud vol. 2?)

I rated most of the pieces of fiction 4 or 5 stars and only one 3 stars, which just shows I really enjoyed all of the stories. My average rating (of all the stories) was approximately 4.2, so 4 stars. My favourites were the ones by Cynthia So, Tanya Byrne, Karen Lawler, Moïra Fowley-Doyle and Dean Atta (which I mentioned before). These authors in special are ones I'm going to look out for in the future, since I really enjoyed their writing.

In conclusion, this is a really good and important anthology I think everyone should read, all about being proud and celebrating queer people. It made me discover new authors (especially because I don't read much UKYA fiction), branch outside of my confort zone, since I don't normally read anthologies, and made me really happy, really. Hope it makes you happy too!