Must Read: LGBT books written by people of colour

Every Wednesday on the Sarah Brett show we'll be hearing about some of the best books around.

This week Joelle Owusu, commissioning editor from publishing company Unbound, brings us her top five books with LGBT themes, all written by people of colour.

Have you read any of these books, or do you have another favourite to recommend? Comment below to let us know what you think.

Speak No Evil by Uzodinma Iweala

"Uzodinma Iweala is a Nigerian-born American writer and this is his second novel after Beasts of No Nation which was made into a film starring Idris Elba, so this is a highly anticipated novel for him.

"It's about a boy called Niru who lives an amazing life. He's bound for Harvard with exceptional grades and is a high achiever, but his big secret is that he's queer. If you're from a West African household, coming out as anything other than heterosexual could tear a family apart.

"Niru confides in his best friend Meredith... but she has her own issues to deal with and sometimes she's not always there for him. There's miscommunication and friendships start to break down.

"It's a really beautiful book about friendship and discovering sexuality as a Nigerian-American."

Unbecoming by Anuradha Bhagwati

"This is a memoir written by Anuradha Bhagwati about her childhood.

"She is the daughter of Indian immigrants to America who came out as bisexual and was also in the US Marines, a really fierce section of the military. She left her Ivy League college job to join the military and is now working for policy reform there.

"Unbecoming is a story of determination and getting through obstacles as a queer Indian woman. It's a really deep and honest book and a really brave memoir."

Trans Britain: Our Journey from the Shadows by Christine Burns

"Christine Burns is the editor of this anthology, the first of its kind. She's campaigned for a quarter of a century for civil rights for transgender people.

"There is a notion that because there has been a lot of news about trans people over the last three or four years, people seem to think they've come from nowhere, but this book is fascinating because it takes you though the history of trans people in Britain all the way from last century.

"You learn so much about the gender recognition act and the people who paved the way before any of us were born.

"At the back of the book is a glossary for terms related to transgender people, so there's no excuse for not understanding the words used in the book."

The Love and Lies of Rukhsana Ali by Sabina Khan

"I've included this in my list because young adult books are doing a really great job at the moment of being more inclusive.

"A lot of other genres need to catch up, but when it comes to books that represent LGBT people and people of colour, a lot of young adult books are paving the way for diverse reading.

"Rukhsana Ali has very conservative Muslim parents who have expectations that she'll go to college, then on to uni, and then marry a man. Rukhsana is queer and was whisked away to her homeland in Bangladesh after she was caught kissing another girl.

"She then has to deal with an even more conservitive family and navigates things like arranged marriage. The book isn't all doom and gloom though, it's very empowering in a way."

A People's History of Heaven by Mathangi Subramanian

"The cover for this book is so beautiful. Mathangi Subramanian is an award winning writer and educator and A People's History of Heaven is her first novel - I've never read anything like it.

"It's set in Bangalore in the slums, which they call 'heaven', and it follows five girls who are all born in the same year in the same slums but all have different faiths. 

"They get on really well and form a close bond but when the government want to gentrify the area and remove the homes the live in, they have to come together to wage a war against the city.

"The book is fascinating because it's partially transgender erotica fiction, which isn't something you read every day, but is really fascinating because it blends queerness with geopolitics and gentrification and ethnic cleansing which happens all over the world, but especially in India where there's a really polarising landscape of slums right next to luxury high-rise apartments."

How We Fight for Our Lives by Saeed Jones

"This is Saeed Jones' memoir and tells the story of him growing up as a gay man in the Southern US which is very conservative, especially when you add in being African American as well, it's super conservative.

"Throughout the book you hear about the obstacles he faced such as racism and desiring men in a way they think is 'outside the norm' in the South. 

"It pieces together a larger examination of race, queerness, vulnerability, love and grief. Throughout his life Saeed is fighting to be himself, that's all he's wanted from childhood, to be able to live authentically as himself.

"Saeed is a poet and that translates to the book in the way [that] it is so beautifully and sharply written."

Listen to interview with Rowan Hisayo Buchanan, author of Starling Days