Happy Labor Day! To celebrate labor, we gathered nine books we’ve enjoyed – fiction and non-fiction – that feature queer folks getting involved in labor movements! The contributors to the list are: Shadaras, Linnea Peterson, Evangeline Giaconia, CarCrash, Sebastian Marie, Nina Waters and an anonymous contributor.
Metal from Heaven by August Clarke
He who controls ichorite controls the world.
A malleable metal more durable than steel, ichorite is a toxic natural resource fueling national growth, and ambitious industrialist Yann Chauncey helms production of this miraculous ore. Working his foundry is an underclass of destitute workers, struggling to get better wages and proper medical treatment for those exposed to ichorite’s debilitating effects since birth.
One of those luster-touched victims, the child worker Marney Honeycutt, is picketing with her family and best friend when a bloody tragedy unfolds. Chauncey’s strikebreakers open fire.
Only Marney survives.
A decade later, as Yann Chauncey searches for a suitable political marriage for his ward, Marney sees the perfect opportunity for revenge. With the help of radical bandits and their stolen wealth, she must masquerade as an aristocrat to win over the calculating Gossamer Chauncey and kill the man who slaughtered her family and friends. But she is not the only suitor after Lady Gossamer’s hand, leading her to play twisted elitist games of intrigue. And Marney’s luster-touched connection to the mysterious resource and its foundry might put her in grave danger – or save her from it.
No Better Than Beasts by Z.R. Ellor
The Gogitdan siblings had suffered much to fight for their place in Szpratzian Society. Immigrants from the cursed neighboring kingdom of Kolznechia, they spent their childhood on the street and in workhouses until Vdradir, the eldest, lifted from poverty with the help of a wealthy patron.
Now nineteen, Nabik is a conflicted soldier, forever in the shadow of his older brother. Vdradir has been appointed governor, ruling and grasping for power with a merciless iron fist. And Drakne, their little sister, is a dancer who dreams of peace and comfort and protection. Together, they are as broken and divided as the land they once called home.
When a powerful enemy rises, and signs of war between the Szpratzian empire and Kolznechia begin to spread, the siblings are forced to choose―cling to power and safety or save the remains of their tattered bond? When Rat Kings and Pinewood Princes force them into the Kolznechian woods, the siblings will be forced to fight for their home and humanity with teeth and claw…
Make Room for Love by Darcy Liao
When a tall, stunning butch protects Mira from her ex-boyfriend at the club—and offers her a safe place to stay—Mira should be relieved. Not flustered. She’s not into women. Yet this tough electrician with curves for days makes Mira’s heart race like never before.
But Isabel, wounded by grief, forces Mira to keep her distance. Until Mira’s desperate to win a union election at work—and only Isabel has the experience to teach her how.
Soon they’re lingering over dinner, teasing each other as the apartment heats up. And Isabel is making her coffee every morning, hanging her shelves, giving her smoldering looks before bed… But Mira can’t afford temptation. Not after living with her nightmare ex. No matter how well Isabel takes care of her…or how much Isabel needs healing, too. She can’t risk her freedom—or her heart.
When the Angels Left the Old Country by Sacha Lamb
Uriel the angel and Little Ash (short for Ashmedai) are the only two supernatural creatures in their shtetl (which is so tiny, it doesn’t have a name other than Shtetl). The angel and the demon have been studying together for centuries, but pogroms and the search for a new life have drawn all the young people from their village to America. When one of those young emigrants goes missing, Uriel and Little Ash set off to find her.
Along the way the angel and demon encounter humans in need of their help, including Rose Cohen, whose best friend (and the love of her life) has abandoned her to marry a man, and Malke Shulman, whose father died mysteriously on his way to America.
But there are obstacles ahead of them as difficult as what they’ve left behind. Medical exams (and demons) at Ellis Island. Corrupt officials, cruel mob bosses, murderers, poverty. The streets are far from paved with gold.
With cinematic sweep and tender observation, Sacha Lamb presents a totally original drama about individual purpose, the fluid nature of identity, and the power of love to change and endure.
Ancillary Sword by Ann Leckie
Breq is a soldier who used to be a warship. Once a weapon of conquest controlling thousands of minds, now she has only a single body and serves the emperor.
With a new ship and a troublesome crew, Breq is ordered to go to the only place in the galaxy she would agree to go: to Athoek Station to protect the family of a lieutenant she once knew — a lieutenant she murdered in cold blood.
Heavenly Tyrant by Xiran Jay Zhao
After suffering devastating loss and making drastic decisions, Zetian finds herself at the seat of power in Huaxia. But she has also learned that her world is not as it seems, and revelations about an enemy more daunting than Zetian imagined forces her to share power with a dangerous man she cannot simply depose. Despite having vastly different ideas about how they must deconstruct the corrupt and misogynist system that plagues their country, Zetian must join this man in a dance of truth and lies and perform their roles to perfection in order to take down their common enemy, who seeks to control them as puppets while dangling one of Zetian’s loved ones as a hostage.
With political unrest and perilous forces aiming to undermine Zetian at every turn, can she enact positive changes as a fair and just ruler? Or will she be forced to rely on fear and violence and succumb to her darker instincts in her quest for vengeance?
Renegade Girls by Nora Neus & Julie Robine
Seventeen-year-old Helena “Nell” Cusack came to New York this summer looking for a story—a real story. She dreams of one day writing hard-hitting articles for the New York Chronicle, but so far she’s only managed to land a job as a lowly society reporter. That is, until Alice Austen strolls into her life, an audacious street photographer who encourages Nell to shake up polite society…and maybe also take a chance on love.
When her best friend, Lucia, is injured while working in a garment factory, Nell is determined to crack the story wide open. Posing as a seamstress, she reports on the conditions from the inside, making a name for herself as the Chronicle’s first ever stunt girl. But as Nell’s reporting gains momentum, so do the objections of those who oppose her. Will Nell continue to seek justice—even if it hurts her in the end?
Based on real-life stunt girl Nell Nelson and photographer Alice Austen, this tenderly drawn narrative is about bringing buried stories to light and the bravery of first love.
A Song for the Unsung: Bayard Rustin, the Man Behind the 1963 March on Washington by Rob Sanders, Carole Boston Weatherford & Byron McCray
On August 28, 1963, a quarter of a million activists and demonstrators from every corner of the United States convened for the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. It was there and then that they raised their voices in unison to call for racial and economic justice for all Black Americans, to call out inequities, and ultimately to advance the Civil Rights Movement.
Every movement has its unsung heroes: individuals who work in the background without praise or accolades, who toil and struggle without notice. One of those unsung heroes was at the center of some of the most important decisions and events of the Civil Rights Movement.
That hero was a quiet man, a gay African American man. He was Bayard Rustin.
Fight to Win!: Heroes of American Labor by Kim Kelly
The history of American labor is full of incredible leaders, organizers, and workers, but not all of them have gotten the recognition they deserve. People like… Rosina Tucker, a Black woman who helped railroad workers organize the first Black-led labor union in America, Maria Moreno, an Indigenous and Mexican woman who fought for farmworkers in the fields of California, Ah Quon McElrath, a Chinese Hawaiian woman who united the laborers of the vast sugarcane plantations, Ben Fletcher, a Black dockworker who organized a strong, interracial union that ran the ports of Philadelphia, Judy Heumann, a disabled Jewish schoolteacher who became the mother of the Disability Rights Movement…and many more. With blood, sweat, and tears, they fought to winthe rights we hold so dear today. Their voices reveal the true history of American labor.
Want to get save these books for future reading? Or buy a copy? We can help! We’ve added these books to a shelf on Goodreads, a list on Pagebound.co, and a rec list on Bookshop.org, for easy browsing and purchasing!
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