Queer Heroes

This was an interesting collection of biographies of queer indivuals. I liked the range that was chosen and felt that all areas were represented. This was presented well and will be a good gift for any interested in queer history.

Thank you, NetGalley and the publisher for the chance to read this book!

I have been anticipating this for a while now, so I instantly hit request when I saw it on NG.

I adored the artwork and the colour scheme was gorgeous. There were a lot of people I knew about already, but some I had never even heard of! It was very nice to learn about them.

My main problem was that I personally thought this lacked representation of the LGBTQ+ community. No ace, non-binary, or pan rep etc...hardly any trans rep (maybe 5 out of 53), so that was a little disappointing. I know it's impossible to represent everyone, but there are 53 people represented here, and most of them are gay, lesbian or bisexual, which is great and amazing! But 53 is a big number and, personally speaking, I would've liked a little bit more.

Overall, a very quick and enjoyable read with stunning artwork and great icons.

A great little book about many different people in the LGBTQ+ community. From singers to writers to activists it doesn't leave anyone out. There's even a few people I didn't know. I do have to say the one thing that is missing is Elton John. One of the biggest singers in the world isn't in the book which is odd when they involved others like Sia and David Bowie.

I loved this! The illustrations and information were wonderful. I am a little disappointed that this featured more modern queer heroes than historical figures. This is more my personal preference, I love learning about Queer history and was hoping this book would introduce me to more historical figures but I only learned of maybe 3. Overall a solid queer book with excellent artwork and information.

I want to start this off by saying I think this is a great book for teenagers to dive into. Not only is the art absolutely fantastic, but it really does introduce a wide variety of individuals throughout history (some of which, I am ashamed to admit, I had never heard of). That being said, I think this novel focused heavily on the LGB and not so much on the wide variety of identities shared under the LGBT+ umbrella (for example, there is no nonbinary or asexual representation). Additionally, focusing on the layout of the novel, the way biographies are set up is a little all over the place. I think the novel would have worked best if they really moved through history and started with Sappho or Leonardo Da Vinci rather than Freddie Mercury. I could not find a cohesive understanding of the novel's layout and it felt messy to me. I still recommend this as it is a novel speaking on diverse and international members of the queer community, but I would keep the representation in mind when picking it up

All in all, it's an interesting addition to the genre, with some lovely artwork, but I feel like more effort and research should've been put into this book. The profiles only briefly mention people's achievements, without really explaining their importance or the impact they had on our society. I also agree with other reviewers that the LGBTQ+ representation shouldn't have been limited to only LGBT.

3 stars instead of 4 because mentioning "communist" as an achievement and a good thing is—and I cannot stress this enough—beyond disgusting. Stop glorifying oppressive thieving mass-murdering totalitarian regimes.

Arc provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

Queer Heroes gives a brief overview of 53 memebers of the LGBTQ community, in a chracter profile style. Each person is beautifully depicted by artist, Sarah Tanat-Jones.

The book has a large variety of people, some of whos stories I new and many that I had not known beforehand. This is the books main purpose, it provides a basic overview of the persons lives and leaves it up to the reader to go and and do a deeper dive.

The book is short, and since it covers 53 people the information provided is basic. I would have liked some more depth, but I understand the resons why they were so brief.

I commend this book for bringing light to an important aspect of these peoples lives, an aspect that for some of them were and are still overlooked.

This is a bright, colorful book for young people to read about LGBTQ people of many countries, and many time periods, although, granted, many of the most famous ones are for the 20th and 21st century.

Some are well known in America, and others are more obscure, but are well known in the countries they come from. Some are famous for being queer, and others are famous for other things, such as dance or art, or singing.

All in all, a good representation of LGBTQ, although, as one reviewer pointed out, there aren't that many Trans people represented, as well as other spectrums of queer sexuality.

<img src="https://g2comm.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/queer-heroes.png" alt="" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-5528" />

<img src="https://g2comm.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/queer-heros.png" alt="" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-5527" />

My only objection to this book is including people who were not out as being LGBTQ, and there is no way of knowing for sure, such as Leonardo Da Vinci or Michelangelo.

Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.

This is a great book for children and young teens to learn about queer history and icons. The art is poppy and each section gives enough information to pull you in to want to learn more about the person.

This books is a great introduction to queer heroes throughout history and in the present. The art was beautiful and extremely well done. I also liked that the blurbs were concise without being too long.

Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for providing me an arc for an honest review

This book was absolutely stunning and beautiful. It was colorful with the most fascinating art and great short descriptions of amazing people.
Absolutely adored it!
Definitely gonna get this as a physical book for myself!

The art work in this book is amazing, so celebratory and fun! It was exciting learning about so many inspirational LGBTQ+ individuals, there were many individuals in this book that I didn't know! and I will definitely look into their work in the future. I love that it covers so much of LGBTQ+ history, and how this book was extremely inclusive with including LGBTQ+ people from around the world!
This is a great introductory book into inspirational LGBTQ+ people from all eras and parts of the world! However, I'm giving four stars because some groups included in the LGBTQ+ community were left out and would have been really exciting if they were included.
[I received a copy on NetGalley for a honest review]

I love the artwork in this book, it is bright and colourful, and each page reflects the person on it (as far as I can know without actually knowing them personally). It’s great to read about so many well known LGBTQ+ people, though it is a pity that some members of the community, for example intersex people, have not been included. I think this would be a great introductory book for a child - the joy of the internet is that if they find people they are particularly interested in, they can look up more details.

Overall, some interesting information on a number of LGBTQ+ people, but it loses a star for not being quite inclusive enough.

I was given a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This is a wonderful collection of lgbtq heroes filled with vibrant illustrations. It features people from different eras and from all over the world. I learned quite a bit. Highly recommended!

This is a beautifully illustrated book that tells the short biographies of 53 LGBTQ folks from history and the present. I love the fact that it features biographies of people outside of the the US and England, like Manvendra Singh Gohil, an Indian prince who became the first openly gay prince and faced terrible treatment when he came out, as well as famous LGBTQ people from Syria, Spain, Iceland, Israel, Australia, Rome and much more. The art is stunning and the tone is positive. Many bisexual people are included. Some trans folks are included but as other reviewers have noted, not a lot and there is a lack of non-binary and other inclusion. That said, this is a fantastic compilation of LGBTQ biographies that's sure to inspire.

I read a temporary digital ARC of this book for the purpose of review.

I appreciated the inclusion of diverse, international, historical and current LGBTQ+ icons. But, it felt like this book just stopped at LGBT and didn't dive into other current and historical queer icons.on the queer spectrum. I would've liked to see pansexual, asexual and non-binary queer heroes like Brendon Urie and Sam Smith included in this non-fiction collection. I appreciated the illustrations of each person mentioned, the illustrations were stunning and I liked how they just added a short biography of important information.

ARC provided by Wide Eyed Editions via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Queer Heroes: Meet 53 LGBTQ Heroes from Past and Present! by Arabelle Sicardi is a colourfully illustrated collection of the lives, achievements and the impacts important LGBTQ+ figures throughout history had and have on our world, published to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall Uprising.

It was an extremely interesting read that even taught me about queer heroes and heroines around the world I’ve never heard of that I am so thankful to have now discovered!

This book was such a good book on LGBT heroes. It's great to see stories from bisexual people being told alongside stories of gay, lesbian and trans people. Queer Heroes is the first book by Arabelle Sicardi, who identifies as queer themselves, and I think they did a wonderful job of gathering these stories.

The only thing that I wish would have been added were the stories of asexual, intersex and non-binary people. There are stories from the 1800's about asexuality which I wish would have been told as well. Overall, this book would be great for children to be introduced to the history of LGBT people and movements.

I found this book super interesting! Learning about queer history is definitely important, and this book was very cool.

"Queer Heroes" gives a short introduction to some of the most well-known queer icons, past and present. I really liked the illustrations and that the book didn't only focus on western queer people.

Queer Heroes had a variety of people from lots of different places and it had some really great and colourful illustrations. It also had a glossary and additional resources listed, which was neat. The majority of the people in this book covered the LGB-part of LGBT+, but there were a couple of trans and I wish there were more trans showed in this book in addition to asexual and the more marginalized groups within the LGBT+ community.

This book is absolutely beautiful and so so important. It tells the story of these icons so beautifully and in a way that is so easy to digest. Everything about the book is just amazing.

I think this book is wonderful. It's an amazing teaching tool for all ages. The book is vibrant and inspirational. My only minor complaint is the way it's organaized. I think it maybe would have worked better if it was listed by the year. But overall I can't wait to share this with others.

The book is fairly short but has a large overview of different kinds of people from different backgrounds and (overlapping) identities, which invites the reader to do more independent research on whomever they find most interesting. After all, this isn't meant to be an exhaustive biography of a person but a snapshot of 53 different LGBTQ heroes. Some of them are very well known, some are well known but not well known to be LGBTQ, some are lesser known. I find it particularly important that some people mentioned are dead and some are alive, the latter usually being the exception for books like this.
The book also comes with a glossary and additional resources, which I think all LGBTQ books should include.
The writing style is quite simple, which makes it accessible to different ages, attention spans etc
The illustrations are simply gorgeous!
If I have to be nit-picky, I would say that including super rich CEOs isn't the best choice because of all of that unethical wealth dilemma (but that is debatable and it also has upsides, such as pissing off homophobic Apple users). Additionally, there could have been more examples of trans and non-binary people but the examples that were chosen were very well elected and certainly more than in most comparable books.
A book like this can't possibly include every single LGBTQ Hero but if anyone reading this review wants to learn about even more not included in the book feel free to do some research about Federico García Lorca, Christopher Isherwood, James Barry, James Dean and Marlon Brando, Cary Grant, Roberta Cowell, Erika Mann and WH Auden, Annemarie Schwarzenbach, Laura Jane Grace, Eddie Izzard, Julie D'Aubigny, Ruby Rose, Rebecca Sugar, Jeffrey Marsh....

actual rating: 3.5

This book was absolutely gorgeous and had several people I had not heard of before, although it also featured many of the people you would expect in a book like this. I think it was a little bit bare bones but it is meant for children so I get that they wanted to keep things simple and also focus more heavily on the design element. I also think they did a good job with featuring a lot of POC. Unfortunately there weren't any people who were ace or genderfluid or really any identities outside of the basic 'LGBT' part of the LGBTQ they advertise in the title. This is not surprising to me at this point but as an ace person myself I'm getting kind of sick of it. I think it's a good starter book but definitely needs some supplemental material to cover the identities not mentioned here.

Cool to know trivia about queer people standing up for themselves and for others. And the art (by Sarah Tanat-Jones) is just out of control 😍😍

Thank you for the review copy.

What a gorgeous book ! Perfect for a coffee table book !

I think this book situated itself right in the middle of informational to make me interested. It gave me some good informations and made me want to reach somewhere else for more for so many persons represented.

From what I know of the subject (somewhat limited) this seemed to cover key people from the community. I was super glad to find some less known queer people here too and some from other period of time. However, I must point out that many group were not very represented. Sadly, this is a critique that is generalized for most of LGBTQ+ books is seems. It's hard to include all perspectives, but there's still much more to be done, so we must keep working at it to be as inclusive as possible.

Now I kinda need to buy a physical copy !

“Queer Heroes” is a visually appealing, well written introduction to many LGBTQ+ icons. The little blurbs for each individual provide a nice overview of their life and impact on the LGBTQ+ community. A wealth of ethnicities and nationalities are represented making this a great overview of LGBTQ+ politics the world over. The illustrations are vivid and the format makes this a book you can binge read, then come back to time and time again.

I would love to see more titles like this produced, with an increase in representation for additional identities within the LGBTQ+ community. As someone striving to create an inclusive and welcoming Teen/Tween collection at our small library, this book offers a great jumping off point for young readers with an interest in LGBTQ+ history and leaders. I will definitely be requesting this for purchase at my library as a great addition to our Teen/Tween Non-Fiction collection.

The publisher, Quarto Publishing Group - Wide Eyed Editions, kindly offered me a reader copy (RC) of Queer Heroes:Meet 53 LGBTQ Heroes From Past and Present! by Arabelle Sicardi via NetGalley. Yet, this is an honest review of the book expressing my unbiased opinion.

I loved this book! The illustrations are stunning and very captivating. The short biographies are objective and well-researched, offering the appropriate kind and amount of information. I found this book extremely meaningful and informative as I learned a lot. I truly believe this book should be in the curriculum and every school library in the world. We need more LGBTQ+ education and knowledge, and this book could be the first step into that.

LOVED, LOVED, LOVED this. I'll be getting it in physical format, too. It's that precious. Don't hesitate to get it! You won't regret it.

5 stars – ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Author: Arabelle Sicardi
Illustrator: Sarah Tanat-Jones
Publisher: Quarto Publishing Group - Wide Eyed Editions

Bright. Bold. Vivid. Strong. This book was beautiful and I loved reading about all of the “Queer heros” past and present. Can I first point out that the use of “Queeros” should be totally acceptable here. So many incredible people who’s truth has emboldened others in the LGBTQIA community to live their own truth.

The style of illustrations is really fun. I love how we get bios on each of the people in the book as well as their contributions to the LGBTQIA community.

*Disclaimer: I received this book for free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.


There have been numerous books over the last few years that are a compilation of 'top 50 women' with short biographies and beautiful illustrations. I was so happy to see that this book focused on queer figures and couldn't wait to pick it up!

From Sappho to Kristen Stewart, this book covers gay, lesbian, transgender, bisexual and intersex people, many of which I had never heard of. The illustrations are absolutely beautiful.

Overall I would highly recommend this book and think that there was a good mix of representation. The only thing I would improve on is the length of the biographies as they were quite limited.

4 out of 5 stars!

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with a copy.

This is such a beautiful book, the art and the colors in this book are amazing. This is definitely a book I wish I would've been able to read as a child and will definitely consider reading to my future children. Even as a part of the lgbt community I only knew about maybe a handful of the people in this book so it was a very educational and interesting read. It was very easy to read and perfect to read for kids and educating them on the subject.
There was a pretty good variation of people although I wish they would’ve included maybe some more sexuality’s other than just gay, bi and trans, also would’ve loved if they included non binary people.
Other than that it was really good and I’m very happy I’ve read it.

An absolutely stunning celebration of 53 incredibly inspirational LGBTQ+ role models who have shown extraordinary changes and contributions to today's and yesterday's culture. Throughout history and from around the world, Sicardi writes short yet sincere biographic tales of courage, triumph and determination, from the legendary Frida Kahlo, to Freddie Mercury's outstanding contribution to music, and James Baldwin’s best-selling written works.

That being said, is it bad that I wanted more? We had the L and the G, a bit of the B and the T, but where's the Q and the +? Queer Heroes could've gone above and beyond in celebrating this rich and diverse community but fell somewhat short in capturing that all inclusive representation.

Nevertheless, this is an exceptional book in introducing young readers to a wealth of unforgettable icons and the beautifully, bold illustrations by Sarah Tanat-Jones bring it to a whole new level.

Maybe there’ll be a Queer Heroes 2...?

I absolutely loved this book that I got a chance to read on netgalley. I loved all the history of each icon in the book and information that I never knew so it was an educational read also. The colours and illustrations throughout this book was amazing. I would highly recommend this book.

The back with word definitions was a really big plus.

I loked the stories and the art was beautiful an fun as well. A good introduction to the LGBTQ+ community for children.

**I received a copy of this book from on Netgalley from the publisher, in exchange of an honest review. All opinions are my own.**

The art in the book was absolutely beautiful. The colors were so vibrant, which is part of the reason I was drawn to it.
I think that the representation in this book was done okay. I can't say it was great because there were to many parts of the LGBTQ+ that were missing. There was no mention of non-binary, asexual, or, intersex individuals. It was more like a LGBT instead of an LGBTQ+ book.
I still think this books was informative though. It showed the struggles of individuals who are LGBT and how they overcame it and how they helped others. I'd definitely recommend this book.

The illustrations in this book are amazing. I loved the mini bios of influential people that inspire the LGBQT+ community

This book is a great collection of inspiring queer people.

All of the people featured in this book are queer. Some are gay or lesbians, while others are bisexual or transgender. I knew that a few of the people were queer, such as Alan Turing. There were some people that I didn’t know identified as queer, such as Virginia Woolf. Most of the people in this book I had never heard of, so I learned a lot about queer activists.

Many of the people featured in this book are from countries where being gay is illegal. These people had to defy their governments, and sometimes even family, to fight for the right to express their own identity. They had to be incredibly strong to stay true to their beliefs, despite what their family and country said.

I loved the art in this book. All of the images are done in vibrant colours which give a positive feeling to these stories, which did not always have a happy endings.

I really enjoyed this book!

Thanks Wide Eyed Editions for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

My thanks to Quarto Publishing Group- Wide Eyed Editions for a temporary digital copy via NetGalley of ‘Queer Heroes’ written by Arabelle Sicardi with art by Sarah Tanat-Jones in exchange for an honest review.

Subtitled: ‘Meet 53 LGBTQ Heroes From Past and Present!’ it is intended for readers aged 10-15 and to provide brief overviews of a selection of historical and modern people.

Sarah Tanat-Jones’ art work was bright and colourful and I felt that she did well to capture her subjects.

I thought Arabelle Sicardi’s introduction was quite moving explaining why this project was meaningful for her and how she hopes that it will inspire its young readers.

It includes a glossary and a section on sources, organisations and websites to seek further information.

I felt that this was an informative work of nonfiction and applauded its diversity. Certainly educational whether or not the reader identifies as queer.

Queer heroes is such a wondrous celebration of queer people.

It's vibrant with it's bright colours and artwork. It does an incredible job of capturing the brilliant triumphs and tribulations of queer people throughout human history in easily digestible, bite-sized offerings. It celebrates the wins and grieves the loses with respect and love.

This makes an incredible book to have on hand, to give to a young queer person just discovering their identity. Or a book to refer to whenever someone tries to tell you that LGBTQIAP+ people are some kind of 'new phenomenon'. It's definitely a book I'll be adding to my list wishlist because I'd love to have a physical copy on the shelf I have labelled as my Gay Gang shelf.

➽ <b>This was a really nice nonfiction book highlighting queer celebrities of the past and present. </b> It's definitely more surface level, but I think that covering such a broad spectrum of people doesn't allow for much more information to be featured. That's why I think Queer Heroes is a <strong>great starting point if you want to read about inspirational LGBTQ people</strong> and gain a quick insight into their lives, but if you want to explore these people further you'll have to do additional research. Nevertheless, the short portrait that we get is beautifully illustrated and very aesthetically pleasing. It highlights why the features person is a 'hero' and has the potential to be very inspirational for our own life. Some people I already knew, others I discovered through this book, which was very nice as the<strong> book tries to cover many experiences and balances present and past heroes in a really great mix</strong>. My favorite's to read about were Freddie Mercury, Emma González, and Alan Turing, but there are many more great people features. I liked that the book included lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans people, as well as people of color and a few people that had a disability. However, the<strong> lack of asexual representation</strong> (the word wasn't even defined in the glossary) remains disappointing, especially for a book published in 2019 that should try to include all identities.

🌈 "<i>Queer Heroes</i> gives an interesting overview of 53 modern and classical queer heroes/role models, including a variety of experience, summed up in a colorful portrait." 🌈

I love this so much!! This is a very colourful book featuring short biographies of famous queer heroes, celebrities, activists, politicians and historical figures - as well as people you may not have heard of before.
It is very positive, not preachy, uses inclusive language in a natural way, and every page absolutely bursts with colour and quirky illustrations.
This is the ideal 'coffee table' book for modern times!!
Personally, as a teacher I would like a copy for my classroom to stimulate natural conversation about role models and to inspire my kids!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for letting me read an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review

This was put together exceptionally well. The flow of the artwork and the layout was seemless. I loved the information given about each important person. The diversity was like the cherry on top. Very fun and colorful but also serious and educational. Loved it!

Whilst some of the entries into this book seem a little speculative, this is generally an excellent book. A lot of the people included within this book I hadn't realised were queer and it made me really happy to see them included.

The artwork is something else altogether! Wow! Every page has absolutely stunning drawings in full colour truly bringing the entries to life.

The book's introduction is personal and explains the deep importance of what follows to the author.  She recalls looking for people more like her and longing for role models; Ms. Sicardi is making what she wanted easily available to young readers. 


This book can be read in order or flipped through.  It is engagingly illustrated and filled with people, some of whom readers will know even as others become new acquaintances.  Just some of those profiled include Sappho, Freddie Mercury, Emma Gonzalez, James Baldwin, Tove Jansson, Martina Navratilova, Tim Cook. Virginia Woolf, Lili Elbe and Nobuko Voshiya.  The book also includes a helpful glossary.

This title provides its readers with a sense that they are not alone in the world.  It may well encourage them to learn more about those in the book whom they find most appealing.


Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this title in exchange for an honest review.

I requested this book from NetGalley because it sounded so great to read about famous LGBTG+ personalities throught history. And I have to say this was a great collection of short biographies of amazing people that have stood up for who they are, and are truly an inspiration for a lot people. This is definitely a book that every kid and teenager should read.

I thought this small book was such a great mini biography about 53 people who are/were gay, transgender, esbian, transgender, bisexual and intersex people. Even though this was short I loved how it focused on famous people throughout history. Some being entertainers and others artists. There were even few people I didn't know about and would want to read more about them. Plus the art style is stunning. Love all the colors.

[The ARC of this book was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.]

What I liked:
- All the beautiful illustrations!
- The glossary at the end was helpful and informative.
- I learned a lot about queer history.

What I didn't like:
- The e-book was a bit hard to read.
- I wish there was more about asexual and nonbinary people. The terms should at least be mentioned in the glossary.

I would recommend this book to people who are new to the queer community and/or who want to learn more about queer history.

This is a book that every teen, straight or queer, should check out. I learned so many things about the people mentioned in this book, even the ones I already thought I knew a lot about. It also shows that Gay people didn’t just start showing up recently. We’ve always been around, and we’ll continue to be.

The illustrations in this book were also really interesting. I’m excited to check out a physical copy because I just know they’ll look even better off of the screen.