
The Queer Books I’d Buy if Money Was No Object
This week, I was outbid in the Crime Writers for Trans Rights 2025 Auction, which is great news, because it raised more money for the Transgender Law Center. I was a little disappointed, though, that my budget could not afford another bid. That got me thinking about the queer books I’d buy if money was no object.
Despite my life revolving around books and reading, I don’t buy a ton of books. I have the library to thank for that! My biggest book purchase of all time was buying a nine-volume hardcover complete compilation of The Ladder, a lesbian magazine that ran from 1956 to 1972. I walked past it at the used bookstore I worked at for about a year before I broke down and spent more than I’d like to admit buying it for myself as a graduation present.
Aside from that one-time splurge, I tend to keep to a pretty small book buying budget. If that budget was unlimited, though, here’s what I’d buy…
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The Gilda Stories Unpublished Sequel Signed by Jewelle Gomez
I’ll start with the auction item I missed out on. I love
The Gilda Stories, a vampire novel unlike any other. For the auction, Jewelle Gomez offered up a signed manuscript of the not-year-published sequel! I didn’t even know it was getting a sequel! I was so excited about the chance to read it early, not to mention getting a signed manuscript by the author. Alas, I was outbid.

Tipping the Velvet by Sarah Waters, a Signed First Edition
This is my all-time favourite book, so it would be nice to have a signed first edition, if money was no object. It looks like they’re not easy to find, though. I only saw one on AbeBooks, and the listing didn’t give me a lot of confidence. It’s a little easier to find signed editions of Fingersmith, which I also love, so maybe I should aim for that one.
A Whole Lot of Lesbian Pulp Fiction
I have a small collection of lesbian pulp fiction books, displayed cover out in my office. There’s something about those covers. They’re so campy. Surprisingly, there are hundreds of lesbian pulp titles out there: they were popular in the 1950s and ’60s. If I had my way, I’d own a copy of each of them. Unfortunately, they often sell for hundreds of dollars, so that’s out of my price range.
So Much Queer Manga
I have really enjoyed reading more queer (especially yuri/GL/sapphic) manga recently, which I generally get from the library. There are so many more I’d like to read that aren’t available from the library, though. It would be fun to be able to buy a whole series at once and race through them, but that adds up far too quickly for how little time they take me to read.
Customized Editions of My Favourite Queer Books
Sprayed edges and special editions have become more and more common—but they’re still pretty rare when it comes to queer books. (Unless you subscribe to Rainbow Crate.) My favourite books generally don’t have a fancy special edition, but if money was no object, I’d get custom editions of them done, like this copy of The Song of Achilles with hand-painted edges from SoledadsAtelier on Etsy.
What about you? What would you buy if you had an unlimited book buying budget? Let’s chat in the comments!
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