Claire Gross, on "What Makes a Good YA Coming-Out Novel?"
Queer young adult novels don’t have to be coming-out stories, but coming out is a common theme in many of these books, fitting well with the still-in-progress audience and the relative newness of the genre. But what makes such a book more than just an issue novel? What gives it that special combination of universality and particularity that allows it to reach a wide audience while at the same time speaking to individual readers on a deeply personal level? What makes a coming-out novel good?
Super essay, well worth a read.