To celebrate Pride Month this year, we caught up with some of our authors and members of the team to hear what Pride means to them. Read on below and find out some some great Pride book recommendations.

Michael Hambling, author

As a gender non-conforming person, I’m extremely aware of how much difference Pride has made to public awareness. And the name is so brilliant. Pride! That word says it all. It’s telling us not to be ashamed, not to hide ourselves away in the shadows, not to feel that we are committing some kind of sin by being ourselves.

It's doubly important at the moment, with some politicians and parts of the press promoting the totally mistaken notion that we are somehow a threat to civilised society and to the safety of women. What a dreadful mistruth! For trans people to be falsely represented in this way is such a devious way of gaining votes, and at the expense of a misunderstood minority group. Enough on that! Support your local Pride campaign, please.

Book recommendation: Your Guide by Lee Airton

Christie J. Newport, author and winner of the Joffe Books Prize 2021

Pride Month is a time to celebrate and reflect. Celebrate because we have come such a long way as a society. Reflect because where we are now has been hard won. There is still a way to go, but when I was growing up, two women or two men could not have walked hand-in-hand and felt safe and accepted. I still sometimes worry that I won’t be welcomed in certain places or by certain individuals, but I am often pleasantly surprised. While we are fortunate to live in a country with an overall progressive attitude, there are still so many places where people like me are not just vilified but are at risk from a very real threat. So, I celebrate and reflect but I remain aware of the incredibly harsh treatment faced by others as they attempt to navigate a world that does not understand and embrace them.

Book recommendation: Detective Kate Daniels series by award-winning and bestselling author, Mari Hannah.

Lizzie Fry, author

For me, Pride is all about embracing your authentic self. This was not possible for me for a long time because it wasn't safe to do so — but even just the existence of Pride celebrations gave me hope in dark times. Pride stretches much further than people realise, which is why it is so important to celebrate the diversity of the LGBTQIA+ community.

Book recommendation: City of Vengeance D.V. Bishop

Jasmine Callaghan, Commissioning Editor

Pride is definitely a time to celebrate and immerse myself in the safety of queer spaces. However, Pride is also more than just a celebration (as important as that is) — it’s crucial to look behind to what others have achieved and ahead to what still needs to be done for marginalised members of society.

Book recommendation: This Arab is Queer, edited by Elias Jahshan.

Steph Carey, Commissioning Editor

For me, Pride means love, joy and solidarity. It's a time to come together to celebrate the love and friendship we share in the queer community but also a time to stand in solidarity against injustice. One of my favourite events is Leicester Pride — every year I try to visit my lifelong friends and chosen family Andrew and Russell to dance to CeCe Peniston in the garden with a nice cold glass of wine.

Book recommendation: Vagabonds! by Eloghosa Osunde

Victoria Sigle, Administrator

Pride to me means not forcing yourself into a predetermined mold and giving everyone the space to be themselves fully. Pride month is a time to remember the struggles that got us to where we are today, the heroes like Marsha P Johnson who got us here, and to reflect on how to continue to make the world a safer place for queer people.

Book recommendation: A Lady for a Duke by Alexis Hall.

WHAT PRIDE MEANS TO US