Queer Lit

Here at Queer Lit inclusion and diversity drive everything we do.

We, like many members of the LGBTQ+ community, found it difficult to discover literature that best reflected our ethos and queer experiences. We founded Queer Lit to tackle this problem – to better represent the LGBTQ+ community in Manchester – especially those who love books!

Since then, with your support, we’ve grown exponentially – from stocking just 700 titles online, to now having over 4500 titles in our bricks and mortar store in Manchester’s Great Ancoats Street, which we were able to open in October 2023.

It’s important to us that LGBTQ+ stories are heard far beyond the four walls of our store – and we’re starting right back in schools. Thanks to our amazing customers, we donate around 100 LGBTQ+ books each month to schools across the UK, as part of our programme, ‘Free Books for Schools’. To date, we have donated over 2500, including 250 copies of What’s the T? by Juno Dawson.

In addition, we know LGBTQ+ voices need to be heard in the places where legislative changes can be made too. Most recently, we donated 300 copies of Trans Britain to MPs, to give them a complete understanding of the trans community before changing laws and impacting trans lives.