I found this fair-condition softcover at a local Savers thrift shop. I'd wanted a copy for ages, and was delighted to finally find one! It's a collection of stories aimed at young-adult readers, with the various contributors expressing aspects of coming out to one's family, friends - and even to one's self. Among my favorites:

The title story, Bruce Coville's "Am I Blue?", introduces our unsure-of-his-sexuality narrator to his delightfully-fey fairy godfather Melvin, who helps him address his own fears - and grants a wish that might change the world.

"Running" by Ellen Howard has a girl who's miserable after her best friend Maggie starts ditching her for Maggie's new boyfriend. She meets a girl who sees something in her, and finds a way to encourage her. I found it touching that the author, in her after-story note, explains how she wasn't a welcoming parent when one of her children announced she was gay, and wrote the story in part to make up for that...

"Parents' Night" by Nancy Garden is about a gay-straight alliance in school, and the ups and downs of the two girls who are struggling over whether to come out to their parents or not in order to staff the group's kiosk at an upcoming school event. Touching notes regarding the reactions of the parents here.

"Holding" by Lois Lowry has a student grieving for his father's dead lover Chris - while knowing that he's been deliberately letting his friends believe that "Chris" was a woman out of fear of their reactions. I really liked the interaction between him and his best friend as the story concludes.

Jane Yolen's "Blood Sister" mixes a fantasy world with flash-forward historical notes suggesting it existed in the distant past, where young women have the option to summon a "dark sister" - a kind of alternate self - from some othe dimension. Concepts of self and sisterhood and love mingle here.

William Sleator's "In the Tunnels" surprised me, as its viewpoint characters prove to be Viet Cong fighters, whose difficult existence in the extensive tunnel systems is compounded by the love between two of the men - something that would get both of them summarily killed if discovered.

I enjoyed all the stories in the collection, and appreciated the differing relationships - some are outright love-interests, but the feelings of friends, siblings, and parents are also highlighted. Very good collection.

I plan to leave this book in the LFL at around 2:30 or so; hope the finder enjoys it!

*** Released as part of the Orlando and Pride release challenge. ***