Queering Up Your Shelf

Houston’s Queer Book Club (QBC) highlights representation in literature with each meeting. Currently led by Abigail “Abby” Yesso (she/her), QBC offers opportunities for members to explore queer themes through reading several written works by various authors. Previously discussed works include Someone You Can Build a Nest In by John Wiswell, Orlando by Virginia Woolf, A Sharp Endless Need by Mac Crane, and others.

With the growth of QBC, affiliated subgroups have been formed, such as a Queer Movie Club and Queer Writing Groups, attesting to their members’ desire to explore multiple interests within QBC. The club has also hosted discussions with authors of multiple books and has recently wrapped up its second annual beach trip.

For Yesso, QBC is an important part of her life, owing to the insights she gains from it. “What this club has really opened my eyes to is that there is a book for everyone, and there is a person for every book. Even if it’s something that you or I wouldn’t necessarily gravitate towards, it’s ultimately the representation that matters more,” Yesso explained.

QBC has become an integral part of Yesso’s life, as the club was the gateway for her discovering her queer identity. Amidst social disconnection and isolation at the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, she sought out places to find community online. There, she stumbled upon QBC on Meetup and was further convinced to join the club after finding out they were reading On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong.

At the time, Yesso identified as straight, which led to conflicting feelings regarding the role of allyship within queer spaces. “I didn’t know if they were gonna want me here,” she added. Luckily, QBC turned out to be a fulfilling experience, and Yesso was immediately met with a welcoming atmosphere and the community she craved, further amplified by in-depth discussions. Later, she would discover that the reason for her comfort and sense of safety within QBC is that she is queer.

In 2021, Yesso discovered that the club’s president at the time, Andres, had to withdraw from the role due to relocation. After Andres asked a number of club members to assume the role but found no takers, Yesso stepped in, even with the uncertainty of whether she was going to stay in Houston. She’s originally from South Louisiana and, while furthering her career, had to move multiple times to pursue opportunities. With the offer to be in charge of QBC in mind, Yesso has warmed up to the idea of finally settling down. Her decision to commit to the leadership role with

QBC has helped the club flourish, with membership going from fewer than ten people when she joined to nearly 400 in the five years she’s been leading the organization. The increase in membership can be attributed to QBC’s shift to digital social media platforms such as Instagram and Discord, and its collaboration with Brazos Bookstore in 2024. Brazos Bookstore provides the space in which QBC and other book clubs meet, and offers a discount to club members who purchase their reading material there.

At the center of QBC’s growth is the search for queer spaces that are welcoming to all age demographics, unlike nightclubs and bars. QBC’s ability to use literature as a stimulus for vulnerability, empathy, and compassion can be best exemplified by its experience reading Woodworking by Emily St. James, a novel relating the experience of a 35-year-old transgender woman and the bond she has with her student, who is the only other trans person she knows.

The exploration of an unconventional bond brings forth conversations around other ways in which we can foster queer relationships within our lives. While there is an aversion to fostering relationships with older folks outside of family due to broad Westernized perspectives, Yesso believes inter-generational friendships are valuable and rewarding. In spaces where it is common for queer people to fear ostracization from older relatives, QBC is a place where one can share their own experiences and connect with others with various perspectives. Cultivating these dynamics is part of Yesso’s goal within QBC: to reflect the same acceptance and kindness she grew up with.

“I told my mom I was going on a date with a woman,” she recalls, “and I said, ‘I’m pretty sure I’m not straight’ and my mom went ‘Okay,’ and I asked, ‘Well, how do you feel about that?’ and she said, ‘Abby, you’ve always loved everyone.” The story of how Yesso came out to her mother would influence the warmth she brings to QBC. “Everyone deserves a mom who says you’ve always loved everyone,” she adds.

“QBC is not just important for me. It’s important for all our members to feel like they have a space to be safe, to share their own feelings about what is going on around them, and have something to look forward to every month. If I can give them that, then I’m going to do it,” Yesso explains.

QBC will be exploring Another Country by James Baldwin on June 7 at 6 p.m. at Brazos Bookstore.

For more info, visit linktr.ee/qbchouston.