The first anthology I read this year was All Out: the No Longer Secret Stories of Queer Teens Throughout the Ages edited by Saundra Mitchell (historical fiction, 353 pages).

“Take a journey through time and genres and discover a past where queer figures live, love and shape the world around them. Seventeen of the best young adult authors across the queer spectrum have come together to create a beautifully written diverse historical fiction for teens. Form a retelling of Little Red Riding Hood set in war-torn 1870s Mexico featuring a transgender soldier, or two girls falling in love while mourning the death of Kurt Cobain, forbidden love in a sixteenth-century Spanish convent or an asexual girl discovering her identity amid the 1970s roller-disco scene, All Out tells a diverse range of stories across cultures, time periods and identities, shedding light on an area of history often ignored or forgotten.”

I picked up this anthology years ago, before I moved back to the west coast and only just now found it as I was unpacking even more of my boxes. I guess that’s the fun of moving across the country and buying a house – it feels like you’re unpacking boxes forever.

This was a really good anthology and I’m very glad I picked up it. I haven’t actually seen it in stores since I moved, which is maybe odd and maybe not, depending on your perspective. I feel a little bit like it’s getting harder and harder to find QUILTBAG content “in the wild” and this is a bit frustrating. There are even rumors that the current political climate in the U.S. has created a situation where a lot of QUILTBAG authors or stories have been discontinued from their publishers, as pressure from a certain political party who despises everything not like their world view forces more and more book bannings and other freedom-reducing activities.

I think the only story I struggled with was “Every Shade of Red” by Elliot Wake. The story premise was absolutely fascinating but it seemed to me to end on a very depressing note. While I do understand that the depressing note served the narrative, it’s really hard for me to continue to read story after story with queer characters who don’t get a happy ending. Most of this is because of how frequently tropes such as “bury your gays” and “the girlfriend in the fridge” are portrayed in every aspect of modern media.

Some of these stories did a great job of giving me more history on areas and situations I didn’t even know were things, like “Roja” by Anna-Marie McLemore and “Healing Rosa” by Tehlor Kay Mejia.

I think my favorite stories in the anthology were “The Dresser & the Chambermaid” by Robin Talley and “The Girl With the Blue Lantern” by Tess Sharpe. Both of these stories had a bit of amusement mixed in with a little bit of a mystery and I enjoyed them thoroughly.

Overall, I’d say the entire anthology as a whole is a four on my rating scale. I’m glad I bought it and I will likely reread it again in the future.

Mitchell, Saundra, editor. All Out. Harlequin Teen, 2018.