#paper planes by jennie wood; sounds fake but okay; the charm offensive and kiss her once for me by alison cochrun

[aroaceinaerospace]

since it's the start of a new year and I'm a bookworm, I figured I'd share some of the aspec books I read in 2023. I've added any of the big content warnings I can think of as well as a link to the books on storygraph where there are more in depth content warnings.

Fiction:

Wren Martin Ruins It All by Amanda DeWitt follows the titular character Wren Martin during senior year of high school as he becomes student council president and fights his vice president to try and get the school's Valentine's Day dance shut down. Wren is very much an externally grumpy person who becomes much more loveable as you get to know him and see the reasoning behind his grumpiness. Rep includes asexual main character and an aromantic side character, and note this book is a romance.

Is Love The Answer by Uta Isaki is a coming of age manga following Chika as she tries to find the answer to who she is and explores her identity. This book is full of aro and ace rep with different life experiences. CW for aphobia and attempted SA.

Just Lizzie by Karen Wilfred is a middle grade book following Lizzie in how a science class assignment helped lead her to an understanding of her asexuality. At the same time, Lizzie is having to adjust to a new home and changes in what was once familiar and safe. CW for aphobia, harassment.

Non-fiction:

*note: these books cover some triggering topics in different parts of them, including racism, SA, aphobia, and more

Ace and Aro Journeys by The Ace and Aro Advocacy Project (TAAAP) is a really great overview of aspec identities, it gives more time to aro identities than a lot of other books, and provides quotes and information from people on various parts of the spectrums. This book brings in some intersectionality, though it is more broad than a deep dive.

Refusing Compulsory Sexuality by Sherronda J. Brown, which has been my favorite read. This book is fantastic if you're ready for a deep dive into intersectionality and some deeper history on asexuality. This book, despite being very short, is a much heavier read content-wise, but it is very thought provoking and will stick with you. Each chapter gives you content warnings up front for the materials that will be addressed in the chapter. Personally, this book has been my favorite book on the subject and I intend on reading it many more times to capture more of the nuance.