Asexual Awareness Week 2024

Asexual Awareness Week 2024: Understanding Asexuality and Celebrating Identity

Are you curious about asexuality? Do you want to learn more about the diverse experiences within the asexual community and how to be a better ally? Asexual Awareness Week (AAW) 2024, held annually in October, provides a vital platform to increase understanding and celebrate the asexuality spectrum. This comprehensive guide will delve into the meaning of asexuality, explore the complexities of the asexual community, discuss common misconceptions, and offer practical ways to show support during and beyond AAW. We'll unpack the nuances of asexuality, discuss its intersection with other identities, and equip you with the knowledge to foster a more inclusive and accepting environment for all.

What is Asexuality?

Asexuality is a sexual orientation characterized by a lack of sexual attraction. This doesn't mean asexual individuals are incapable of experiencing love, intimacy, or pleasure; it simply means that sexual attraction isn't a part of their experience. It's crucial to understand that asexuality exists on a spectrum, with varying degrees of attraction and experiences. Some asexual individuals may experience other forms of attraction, such as romantic, sensual, or aesthetic attraction. These different types of attraction add layers of complexity to the asexual experience and highlight the diversity within the community.

Demystifying the Asexual Spectrum: Beyond the Basics

The asexual spectrum encompasses a wide range of identities and experiences. Understanding this spectrum is vital to dispelling misconceptions and fostering genuine inclusivity. Here are some key terms frequently associated with the asexual spectrum:

Asexual (Ace): The core identity, characterized by a lack of sexual attraction.
Gray-asexual (Gray-ace): Individuals who experience sexual attraction rarely or under specific circumstances.
Demisexual: Those who only experience sexual attraction after forming a strong emotional connection with someone.
Aromantic: Individuals who do not experience romantic attraction. While asexuality and aromanticism often coexist, they are distinct identities.
Alloromantic/Allosexual: These terms refer to individuals who experience romantic/sexual attraction, respectively, providing a useful contrast when discussing the asexual spectrum.

Understanding these terms helps to paint a more complete picture of the richness and diversity within the asexual community. It’s important to remember that individual experiences vary greatly, and labels are only tools for self-identification and communication.

Common Misconceptions about Asexuality

Several misconceptions surround asexuality, stemming from a lack of understanding and representation. Addressing these misconceptions is critical to creating a more inclusive society:

Asexuality is a choice: Asexuality is a sexual orientation, not a choice. It is a fundamental aspect of an individual's identity, just like any other sexual orientation.
Asexual people are broken or need fixing: Asexuality is a valid and natural variation of human sexuality. There is nothing inherently wrong or broken about being asexual.
Asexual people are incapable of intimacy: Asexual individuals are capable of experiencing deep intimacy and connection, just in ways that may not involve sexual attraction.
Asexual people don't have sex: While some asexual individuals may choose not to have sex, others may engage in sexual activity for various reasons, such as emotional intimacy or to please a partner.

Challenging these misconceptions is crucial to fostering empathy and understanding towards the asexual community.

How to Celebrate Asexual Awareness Week 2024

Asexual Awareness Week offers a valuable opportunity to learn, connect, and celebrate. Here's how you can participate:

Educate yourself: Read articles, watch documentaries, and listen to podcasts focusing on asexuality.
Engage with the community: Follow asexual creators on social media, join online forums, or attend virtual or in-person events.
Spread awareness: Share information about asexuality with your friends, family, and colleagues. Use the hashtag #AceAwarenessWeek on social media.
Support asexual organizations and creators: Donate to, or promote, organizations dedicated to supporting the asexual community.
Be an ally: Listen to and amplify the voices of asexual individuals. Respect their experiences and identities.

Beyond Asexual Awareness Week: Ongoing Support and Allyship

The importance of understanding and celebrating asexuality extends far beyond Asexual Awareness Week. Continuing to learn and advocate for inclusivity is vital throughout the year. This involves actively challenging asexuality-related prejudice, using inclusive language, and creating spaces where asexual individuals feel safe, respected, and celebrated. By continuously educating ourselves and actively engaging in allyship, we can contribute to a world where everyone feels accepted and understood, regardless of their sexual orientation.

Ebook Outline: Understanding Asexuality: A Guide for Allies

I. Introduction:
Defining Asexuality and the Asexual Spectrum
The Importance of Asexual Awareness Week
Dispelling Common Misconceptions

II. Exploring Asexuality:
Types of Attraction: Sexual, Romantic, Sensual, Platonic
The Asexual Spectrum: Ace, Gray-Ace, Demisexual, etc.
Intersections of Asexuality with Other Identities (Gender, Race, etc.)

III. Asexual Experiences and Relationships:
Navigating Relationships as an Asexual Individual
Communication and Consent in Asexual Relationships
The Role of Intimacy Beyond Sexual Attraction

IV. Allyship and Advocacy:
How to be a Supportive Ally to Asexual Individuals
Challenging Asexuality-Related Prejudice and Stereotypes
Resources and Organizations Supporting the Asexual Community

V. Conclusion:
The Ongoing Importance of Understanding and Celebrating Asexuality
Continuing the Conversation Beyond Asexual Awareness Week

Detailed Explanation of Ebook Outline Points:

I. Introduction: This section provides a foundational understanding of asexuality, its significance, and addresses prevalent misconceptions, setting the stage for deeper exploration.

II. Exploring Asexuality: This chapter delves into the diverse facets of asexuality, explaining various types of attraction and illustrating the spectrum's breadth. It also addresses the intersectionality of asexuality with other identities, acknowledging the complex lived experiences of individuals.

III. Asexual Experiences and Relationships: This section tackles the practical aspects of navigating relationships, communication, consent, and intimacy within the asexual community, offering valuable insights and guidance.

IV. Allyship and Advocacy: This crucial chapter focuses on practical steps individuals can take to become effective allies, combating prejudice and highlighting available resources and organizations dedicated to supporting the asexual community.

V. Conclusion: This concluding section reinforces the importance of ongoing understanding, allyship, and the need to sustain the conversation beyond Asexual Awareness Week, emphasizing the need for continued inclusivity.

FAQs:

1. Is asexuality a mental illness? No, asexuality is a sexual orientation, not a mental illness.
2. Can asexual people have children? Asexual individuals can have children through various methods, such as adoption or assisted reproductive technologies. Sexual attraction is not a prerequisite for parenthood.
3. Do asexual people experience pleasure? Many asexual individuals experience pleasure, but not necessarily sexual pleasure. They can experience sensual or emotional pleasure in various ways.
4. Is asexuality rare? The prevalence of asexuality is still being studied, but it's clear it's not rare, though it often remains less visible due to societal misconceptions and lack of representation.
5. How can I be a better ally to asexual people? Educate yourself, listen to and amplify asexual voices, challenge misconceptions, and create inclusive spaces.
6. What are some common misconceptions about asexuality? That it's a choice, a mental illness, that asexual individuals are incapable of intimacy or relationships.
7. Are asexual people attracted to anyone? Some asexual people experience other forms of attraction (romantic, sensual, etc.), while others may not.
8. What is the difference between asexual and aromantic? Asexuality relates to sexual attraction, while aromanticism relates to romantic attraction. They are distinct but can co-occur.
9. Where can I find more information about asexuality? The AVEN (Asexual Visibility and Education Network) website is a great resource, along with numerous books and articles on the subject.

Related Articles:

1. Understanding the Aromantic Spectrum: Explores the various identities and experiences within the aromantic spectrum and how it relates to asexuality.
2. Asexual Relationships: Navigating Intimacy and Connection: Focuses on building and maintaining healthy relationships as an asexual person.
3. Demisexuality Explained: A Deep Dive into a Common Asexual Identity: Provides a thorough explanation of demisexuality and its nuances.
4. The Intersection of Asexuality and Gender Identity: Explores the complexities of experiencing asexuality within various gender identities.
5. Challenging Asexual Stereotypes: Myths and Realities: Debunks common misconceptions and sheds light on the diversity within the asexual community.
6. Asexual Representation in Media: A Critical Analysis: Examines the portrayal of asexuality in popular culture and its impact.
7. How to Support an Asexual Partner or Friend: Offers practical advice and strategies for allyship and support.
8. Asexual Visibility and Education Network (AVEN): A Comprehensive Resource Guide: Provides a thorough overview of this important organization and its resources.
9. The History and Evolution of Asexual Awareness Week: Traces the history and significance of AAW and its impact on increasing visibility and understanding.


  asexual awareness week 2024: Chase's Calendar of Events 2024 Editors of Chase's, 2023-10-15 Find out what's going on any day of the year, anywhere across the globe! Since 1957, Chase's Calendar of Events lists everything worth knowing and celebrating for each day of the year: 12,500 holidays, national days, historical milestones, famous birthdays, festivals, sporting events and more. Publishers Weekly has cited it as one of the most impressive reference volumes in the world. Library Journal named the 67th edition (A 2024 Starred Review) an invaluable resource for trivia fans, planners, media professionals, teachers, and librarians.” From national days to celebrity birthdays, from historical milestones to astronomical phenomena, from award ceremonies and sporting events to religious festivals and carnivals, Chase's is the must-have reference used by experts and professionals—a one-stop shop with 12,500 entries for everything that is happening now or is worth remembering from the past. Completely updated for 2024, Chase's also features extensive appendices as well as a companion website that puts the power of Chase's at the user's fingertips. 2024is packed with special events and observances, including National days and public holidays of every nation on Earth Scores of new special days, weeks and months--such as International Day of Zero Waste or World Eel Day Famous birthdays of new world leaders, lauded authors and breakout celebrities Info on the 2024 Great North American Eclipse. Info on the restoration and reopening of Notre-Dame de Paris. Info on milestone anniversaries, such as the 300th birth anniversary of Immanuel Kant, the 250th anniversary of the First Continental Congress, the 100th birth anniversary of James Baldwin and more. Information on such special events as the International Year of Camelids and the Paris Olympics or Euro 2024. And much more!
  asexual awareness week 2024: Growing Up Disabled in Australia Carly Findlay, 2021-02-03 A rich collection of writing from those negotiating disability in their lives - a group whose voices are not heard often enough My body and its place in the world seemed normal to me. Why wouldn’t it? I didn’t grow up disabled; I grew up with a problem. A problem that those around me wanted to fix. We have all felt that uncanny sensation that someone is watching us. The diagnosis helped but it didn’t fix everything. Don’t fear the labels. That identity, which I feared for so long, is now one of my greatest qualities. I had become disabled – not just by my disease, but by the way the world treated me. When I found that out, everything changed. One in five Australians has a disability. And disability presents itself in many ways. Yet disabled people are still underrepresented in the media and in literature. In Growing Up Disabled in Australia – compiled by writer and appearance activist Carly Findlay OAM – more than forty writers with a disability or chronic illness share their stories, in their own words. The result is illuminating. Contributors include senator Jordon Steele-John, paralympian Isis Holt, Dion Beasley, Sam Drummond, Astrid Edwards, Sarah Firth, El Gibbs, Eliza Hull, Gayle Kennedy, Carly-Jay Metcalfe, Fiona Murphy, Jessica Walton and many more.
  asexual awareness week 2024: Let's Talk About Love Claire Kann, 2018-01-23 Striking a perfect balance between heartfelt emotions and spot-on humor, this debut features a pop-culture enthusiast protagonist with an unforgettable voice sure to resonate with readers. Alice had her whole summer planned. Nonstop all-you-can-eat buffets while marathoning her favorite TV shows (best friends totally included) with the smallest dash of adulting—working at the library to pay her share of the rent. The only thing missing from her perfect plan? Her girlfriend (who ended things when Alice confessed she's asexual). Alice is done with dating—no thank you, do not pass go, stick a fork in her, done. But then Alice meets Takumi and she can’t stop thinking about him or the rom com-grade romance feels she did not ask for (uncertainty, butterflies, and swoons, oh my!). When her blissful summer takes an unexpected turn and Takumi becomes her knight with a shiny library-employee badge (close enough), Alice has to decide if she’s willing to risk their friendship for a love that might not be reciprocated—or understood. Claire Kann’s debut novel Let’s Talk About Love, chosen by readers like you for Macmillan's young adult imprint Swoon Reads, gracefully explores the struggle with emerging adulthood and the complicated line between friendship and what it might mean to be something more. Praise for Let’s Talk About Love from the Swoon Reads community: “A sweet and beautiful journey about self-discovery and identity!” —Macy Filia, reader on SwoonReads.com “There aren't many novels that have asexual characters and it's something people need more of.” —Alice, reader on SwoonReads.com “I want this on my shelf where I can admire it every day.” —Kiara, reader on SwoonReads.com
  asexual awareness week 2024: Ace Angela Chen, 2020-09-15 An engaging exploration of what it means to be asexual in a world that’s obsessed with sexual attraction, and what the ace perspective can teach all of us about desire and identity. What exactly is sexual attraction and what is it like to go through life not experiencing it? What does asexuality reveal about gender roles, about romance and consent, and the pressures of society? This accessible examination of asexuality shows that the issues that aces face—confusion around sexual activity, the intersection of sexuality and identity, navigating different needs in relationships—are the same conflicts that nearly all of us will experience. Through a blend of reporting, cultural criticism, and memoir, Ace addresses the misconceptions around the “A” of LGBTQIA and invites everyone to rethink pleasure and intimacy. Journalist Angela Chen creates her path to understanding her own asexuality with the perspectives of a diverse group of asexual people. Vulnerable and honest, these stories include a woman who had blood tests done because she was convinced that “not wanting sex” was a sign of serious illness, and a man who grew up in a religious household and did everything “right,” only to realize after marriage that his experience of sexuality had never been the same as that of others. Disabled aces, aces of color, gender-nonconforming aces, and aces who both do and don’t want romantic relationships all share their experiences navigating a society in which a lack of sexual attraction is considered abnormal. Chen’s careful cultural analysis explores how societal norms limit understanding of sex and relationships and celebrates the breadth of sexuality and queerness.
  asexual awareness week 2024: Arcadia Alex Paknadel, 2016-05-04 What’s to Love: Our long tradition of breaking new talent—like Rafael Albuquerque (The Savage Brothers, American Vampire), Emma Rios (Hexed, Pretty Deadly), and Declan Shalvey (28 Days Later, Moon Knight)—continues with the debut of Alex Paknadel and Eric Scott Pfeiffer, two new creators whose extensive world-building in the sci-fi thriller Arcadia evokes comparisons to epics like Game of Thrones, The Matrix, and Astro City. What It Is: When 99% of humankind is wiped out by a pandemic, four billion people are “saved” by being digitized at the brink of death and uploaded into Arcadia, a utopian simulation in the cloud. But when Arcadia begins to rapidly deplete the energy resources upon which the handful of survivors in the real world (aka “The Meat”) depends, how long will The Meat be able—and willing—to help? Collects the entire eight-issue series.
  asexual awareness week 2024: Perfect Rhythm Jae, 2017-09-19 When her father has a stroke Pop star Leontyne Blake returns to her hometown. Small-town nurse Holly Drummond isn't impressed by Leo's fame. That isn't the only thing that makes her different from other women. She's asexual. Can the tentative friendship between those two women develop into something more?
  asexual awareness week 2024: The Midnight Watch David Dyer, 2016-04-05 As the Titanic and her passengers sank slowly into the Atlantic Ocean after striking an iceberg late in the evening of April 14, 1912, a nearby ship looked on. Second Officer Herbert Stone, in charge of the midnight watch on the SS Californian sitting idly a few miles north, saw the distress rockets that the Titanic fired. He alerted the captain, Stanley Lord, who was sleeping in the chartroom below, but Lord did not come to the bridge. Eight rockets were fired during the dark hours of the midnight watch, and eight rockets were ignored. The next morning, the Titanic was at the bottom of the sea and more than 1,500 people were dead. When they learned of the extent of the tragedy, Lord and Stone did everything they could to hide their role in the disaster, but pursued by newspapermen, lawyers, and political leaders in America and England, their terrible secret was eventually revealed. The Midnight Watch is a fictional telling of what may have occurred that night on the SS Californian, and the resulting desperation of Officer Stone and Captain Lord in the aftermath of their inaction. Told not only from the perspective of the SS Californian crew, but also through the eyes of a family of third-class passengers who perished in the disaster, the narrative is drawn together by Steadman, a tenacious Boston journalist who does not rest until the truth is found. David Dyer's The Midnight Watch is a powerful and dramatic debut novel--the result of many years of research in Liverpool, London, New York, and Boston, and informed by the author's own experiences as a ship's officer and a lawyer.
  asexual awareness week 2024: How to Be Ace Rebecca Burgess, 2020-10-21 PRISM AWARDS FINALIST 2021 GREAT GRAPHIC NOVELS FOR TEENS - YOUNG ADULT LIBRARY SERVICES ASSOCIATION (YALSA) 2022 When I was in school, everyone got to a certain age where they became interested in talking about only one thing: boys, girls and sex. Me though? I was only interested in comics. Growing up, Rebecca assumes sex is just a scary new thing they will 'grow into' as they get older, but when they leave school, start working and do grow up, they start to wonder why they don't want to have sex with other people. In this brave, hilarious and empowering graphic memoir, we follow Rebecca as they navigate a culture obsessed with sex - from being bullied at school and trying to fit in with friends, to forcing themselves into relationships and experiencing anxiety and OCD - before coming to understand and embrace their asexual identity. Giving unparalleled insight into asexuality and asexual relationships, How To Be Ace shows the importance of learning to be happy and proud of who you are.
  asexual awareness week 2024: The Invisible Orientation Julie Sondra Decker, 2015-10-13 Lambda Literary Award 2014 Finalist in LGBT Nonfiction Foreword Reviews’ INDIEFAB Book of the Year Award 2014 Finalist in Family & Relationships Independent Publisher Book Awards 2015 (IPPY) Silver Medal in Sexuality/Relationships Next Generation Indie Book Awards 2015 Winner in LGBT -- What if you weren't sexually attracted to anyone? A growing number of people are identifying as asexual. They aren’t sexually attracted to anyone, and they consider it a sexual orientation—like gay, straight, or bisexual. Asexuality is the invisible orientation. Most people believe that “everyone” wants sex, that “everyone” understands what it means to be attracted to other people, and that “everyone” wants to date and mate. But that’s where asexual people are left out—they don’t find other people sexually attractive, and if and when they say so, they are very rarely treated as though that’s okay. When an asexual person comes out, alarming reactions regularly follow; loved ones fear that an asexual person is sick, or psychologically warped, or suffering from abuse. Critics confront asexual people with accusations of following a fad, hiding homosexuality, or making excuses for romantic failures. And all of this contributes to a discouraging master narrative: there is no such thing as “asexual.” Being an asexual person is a lie or an illness, and it needs to be fixed. In The Invisible Orientation, Julie Sondra Decker outlines what asexuality is, counters misconceptions, provides resources, and puts asexual people’s experiences in context as they move through a very sexualized world. It includes information for asexual people to help understand their orientation and what it means for their relationships, as well as tips and facts for those who want to understand their asexual friends and loved ones.
  asexual awareness week 2024: Funeral Girl Emma K. Ohland, 2022-09-06 Sixteen-year-old Georgia Richter feels conflicted about the funeral home her parents run—especially because she has the ability to summon ghosts. With one touch of any body that passes through Richter Funeral Home, she can awaken the spirit of the departed. With one more touch, she makes the spirit disappear, to a fate that remains mysterious to Georgia. To cope with her deep anxiety about death, she does her best to fulfill the final wishes of the deceased whose ghosts she briefly revives. Then her classmate Milo's body arrives at Richter—and his spirit wants help with unfinished business, forcing Georgia to reckon with her relationship to grief and mortality.
  asexual awareness week 2024: A-Okay Jarad Greene, 2021-11-02 A-Okay by Jarad Greene is a vulnerable and heartfelt semi-autobiographical middle grade graphic novel about acne, identity, and finding your place. When Jay starts eighth grade with a few pimples he doesn’t think much of it at first…except to wonder if the embarrassing acne will disappear as quickly as it arrived. But when his acne goes from bad to worse, Jay’s prescribed a powerful medication that comes with some serious side effects. Regardless, he’s convinced it’ll all be worth it if clear skin is on the horizon! Meanwhile, school isn’t going exactly as planned. All of Jay’s friends are in different classes; he has no one to sit with at lunch; his best friend, Brace, is avoiding him; and—to top it off—Jay doesn’t understand why he doesn’t share the same feelings two of his fellow classmates, a boy named Mark and a girl named Amy, have for him. Eighth grade can be tough, but Jay has to believe everything’s going to be a-okay…right?
  asexual awareness week 2024: Good Poems for Hard Times , 2006-08-29 The book is full of strong, memorable poems that stick with readers like a friend during a long, hard night. - The Christian Science Monitor Here, readers will find solace in works that are bracing and courageous, organized into such resonant headings as Such As It Is More or Less and Let It Spill. From William Shakespeare and Walt Whitman to R. S. Gwynn and Mary Oliver, the voices gathered in this collection will be more than welcome to those who've been struck by bad news, who are burdened by stress, or who simply appreciate the power of good poetry.
  asexual awareness week 2024: The Girl from Dream City Linda Leith, 2021-04-10 Vivid stories from a Canadian literary icon, who shares a life spread across continents and immersed in books. It's the life that many young women dream of: education in some of Europe's most beautiful cities before becoming a novelist, essayist, translator and literary curator. But the start of Linda Leith's journey is anything but idyllic. The daughter of a glamorous mother and a charming left-wing doctor, she is never told of her father's psychiatric breakdown or his subsequent shock therapy for what was then called manic depression. As this secret festers, Leith's father uproots the family to various European cities as he reinvents himself as a corporate executive, eventually moving across the Atlantic to Montreal. It's there, in her first year of university, that Leith is inspired by Madame de Staël: a writer and salonnière, banished from Paris by Napoleon himself. With none of Staël's advantages--no wealth, no social status, no château on Lake Geneva--Leith can scarcely imagine a salon, but she is drawn to Paris, and dreams of becoming a writer. This dream fuels her education in London, her marriage and writing in Budapest, and--finally--her journey back to Montreal where she meets a community of writers and readers who she works with to transform the city's literary scene. As Leith publishes, translates, and curates, she also comes to terms with her troubled father and the secrets of her childhood. A luscious read, this book will rivet readers of Jill Ker Conway's The Road from Coorain and Tara Westover's Educated , or anyone who has dreamed of building a cultural life.
  asexual awareness week 2024: Not Your Backup C. B. Lee, 2019 Content advisory: Some internalized shame throughout an aromatic and asexual questioning arc (examined), some sci-fi violence and offscreen non-graphic minor character death. -- third unnumbered page following text.
  asexual awareness week 2024: Meet Cute Diary Emery Lee, 2021-05-04 Felix Ever After meets Becky Albertalli in this swoon-worthy, heartfelt rom-com about how a transgender teen’s first love challenges his ideas about perfect relationships. * A 2022 ALA Rainbow Booklist Selection * A Junior Library Guild Selection * Noah Ramirez thinks he’s an expert on romance. He has to be for his popular blog, the Meet Cute Diary, a collection of trans happily ever afters. There’s just one problem—all the stories are fake. What started as the fantasies of a trans boy afraid to step out of the closet has grown into a beacon of hope for trans readers across the globe. When a troll exposes the blog as fiction, Noah’s world unravels. The only way to save the Diary is to convince everyone that the stories are true, but he doesn’t have any proof. Then Drew walks into Noah’s life, and the pieces fall into place: Drew is willing to fake-date Noah to save the Diary. But when Noah’s feelings grow beyond their staged romance, he realizes that dating in real life isn’t quite the same as finding love on the page. In this charming novel by Emery Lee, Noah will have to choose between following his own rules for love or discovering that the most romantic endings are the ones that go off script.
  asexual awareness week 2024: Starfish Akemi Dawn Bowman, 2017-09-26 From a debut author comes a gorgeous and emotionally resonant debut novel about a half-Japanese teen who grapples with social anxiety and her narcissist mother in the wake of a crushing rejection from art school. 5 1/2 x 8 5/16.
  asexual awareness week 2024: Between Perfect and Real Ray Stoeve, 2021-04-27 Dean Foster knows that he’s a trans man. He's watched enough YouTube videos and done enough questioning to be sure. But everyone at his high school thinks he’s a lesbian—including his girlfriend Zoe. Maybe he can just wait to openly transition until he’s off at college. Besides, he's got enough to worry about: He’s cast as Romeo in the school play (in what the theater teacher thinks is an interesting gender swap), he’s falling in love with Zoe, and he's applying to the NYU theater program. It’s not everything, but it’s pretty good. But playing a boy every day in rehearsals, Dean realizes he wants everyone to see him as he really is now––not just on the stage, but everywhere in his life. Emboldened by stepping out on the stage as Romeo each day and the trans youth support group he's started attending, he knows what he needs to do. The only question remains: can he try to achieve everything he needs without losing all he has?
  asexual awareness week 2024: Cilla Lee-Jenkins: Future Author Extraordinaire Susan Tan, 2017-03-28 “Meeting Cilla felt like making a new best friend.” —Grace Lin, bestselling author of Newbery Honor book Where the Mountain Meets the Moon Priscilla Cilla Lee-Jenkins is on a tight deadline. Her baby sister is about to be born, and Cilla needs to become a bestselling author before her family forgets all about her. So she writes about what she knows best—herself! Stories from her bestselling memoir, Cilla Lee-Jenkins: Future Author Extraordinaire, include: - How she dealt with being bald until she was five - How she overcame her struggles with reading - How family traditions with her Grandma and Grandpa Jenkins and her Chinese grandparents, Nai Nai and Ye Ye, are so different Debut author Susan Tan has written a novel bursting with love and humor, as told through a bright, irresistible biracial protagonist who will win your heart and make you laugh. A Chicago Public Library Best Book of 2017 2017 Asian Pacific American Library Association Honor Book
  asexual awareness week 2024: We Are the Fire Sam Taylor, 2021-02-16 As electrifying as it is heartbreaking, Sam Taylor's explosive fantasy debut We Are the Fire is perfect for fans of An Ember in the Ashes and the legend of Spartacus. All will burn. In the cold, treacherous land of Vesimaa, children are stolen from their families by a cruel emperor, forced to undergo a horrific transformative procedure, and serve in the army as magical fire-wielding soldiers. Pran and Oksana—both taken from their homeland at a young age—only have each other to hold onto in this heartless place. Pran dreams of one day rebelling against their oppressors and destroying the empire; Oksana only dreams of returning home and creating a peaceful life for them both. When they discover the emperor has a new, more terrible mission than ever for their kind, Pran and Oksana vow to escape his tyranny once and for all. But their methods and ideals differ drastically, driving a wedge between them. Worse still, they both soon find that the only way to defeat the monsters that subjugated them may be to become monsters themselves. Praise for We Are the Fire: At once brutal and tender, this heart-pounding debut will make you ponder what it means to be monstrous—and what it costs to be human. —Joanna Ruth Meyer, author of Echo North and Into the Heartless Wood Set to fill the Ember in the Ashes-shaped void in your heart. —Culturess
  asexual awareness week 2024: Disintegrate/Dissociate Arielle Twist, 2019-06-04 In her powerful debut collection of poetry, Arielle Twist unravels the complexities of human relationships after death and metamorphosis. In these spare yet powerful poems, she explores, with both rage and tenderness, the parameters of grief, trauma, displacement, and identity. Weaving together a past made murky by uncertainty and a present which exists in multitudes, Arielle Twist poetically navigates through what it means to be an Indigenous trans woman, discovering the possibilities of a hopeful future and a transcendent, beautiful path to regaining softness. This publication meets the EPUB Accessibility requirements and it also meets the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG-AA). It is screen-reader friendly and is accessible to persons with disabilities. A Simple book with few images, which is defined with accessible structural markup. This book contains various accessibility features such as alternative text for images, table of contents, page-list, landmark, reading order and semantic structure.
  asexual awareness week 2024: Ending the Pursuit Michael Paramo, 2024-02-08 Powerfully persuasive and thought-provoking, Ending the Pursuit asks us to reimagine sexuality, romance and gender without the borders imposed by society. How did asexual identity form? What is aromanticism? How does agender identity function? Researcher and writer Michael Paramo explores these misunderstood experiences, from the complex challenge of coming out to navigating the western lens of attraction. Expertly mapping their history, Paramo traces the emergence of vital online communities to the origins of the Victorian binaries that still restrict us today. With a groundbreaking blend of memoir and poetry, online articles and discussions, Ending the Pursuit is a much-needed addition to the cultural conversation. It encourages us to end the search for ‘normalcy’ and gives voice to an often-misunderstood community. 'Important . . . Paramo refuses to take for granted the normalized ideas we are fed around how relationships should work and what they should look like' Dr. Ela Przybyło, Illinois State University
  asexual awareness week 2024: Backwards to Oregon Jae, 2007 Lesbian Fiction: Historical Fiction - Luke Hamilton has always been sure that she'd never marry. She accepted that she would spend her life alone when she chose to live her life disguised as a man. After working in a brothel for three years, Nora Macauley has lost all illusions about love. She no longer hopes for a man who will sweep her off her feet and take her away to begin a new, respectable life. But now they find themselves married and on the way to Oregon in a covered wagon, with two thousand miles ahead of them.
  asexual awareness week 2024: Asexual Erotics Elzbieta Przybylo, 2019-08-19 Develops erotics as a way to rethink the role of sex and sexual desire and to envision new forms of asexual intimacy.
  asexual awareness week 2024: Asexuality and Sexual Normativity Mark Carrigan, Kristina Gupta, Todd Morrison, 2024-11-01 The last decade has seen the emergence of an increasingly high profile and politically active asexual community, united around a common identity as 'people who do not experience sexual attraction'. This unique volume collects a diverse range of interdisciplinary empirical and theoretical work which addresses this emergence, raising important and timely questions about asexuality and its broader implications for sexual culture. One of the most pressing and contentious issues within academic and public debates about asexuality is what relationship, if any, it has to sexual dysfunction. As well as collecting cutting edge scholarship in the emerging field of asexuality studies, rendering it indispensable to any sexualities course across the range of disciplines, this anthology also addresses this urgent debate, offering a variety of perspectives on how and why some have pathologised asexuality. This includes a range of chapters addressing the broader issues of sexual normativity within which these contemporary debates about asexuality are taking place. This book was originally published as a special issue of Psychology and Sexuality.
  asexual awareness week 2024: The Butterfly Assassin Finn Longman, 2022-05-26 WINNER OF AN ABA AWARD. Innocent by day, killer by night: a dark, twisting thriller about a teen assassin’s attempt to live a normal life. Don't miss the second book in the trilogy, The Hummingbird Killer, out now. 'An electrifying debut!’ Chelsea Pitcher, author of This Lie Will Kill You Trained and traumatised by a secret assassin programme for minors, Isabel Ryans wants nothing more than to be a normal civilian. After running away from home, she has a new name, a new life and a new friend, Emma, and for the first time, things are looking up. But old habits die hard, and it’s not long until she blows her cover, drawing the attention of the guilds – the two rival organisations who control the city of Espera. An unaffiliated killer like Isabel is either a potential asset . . . or a threat to be eliminated. Will the blood on her hands cost her everything? From award-winning author Finn Longman, an exhilarating voice in YA fiction, comes an addictive trilogy for fans of global phenomena The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Killing Eve and The Hunger Games. PRAISE FOR THE BUTTERFLY ASSASSIN: 'This dark, enthralling thriller is a compulsive debut' The Guardian 'An immersive, fast-paced thriller' The Irish Times ‘A heart-in-your-mouth thriller that grips you from the first page until the very last.’ Benjamin Dean, author of The King is Dead 'A bold, jagged and uncompromising thriller that will keep you guessing all the way to the end.’ Tom Pollock, author of White Rabbit, Red Wolf ‘Sharp and layered, with a bright beating heart. The Butterfly Assassin will lure you deep into a fascinating and dangerous new world.’ Rory Power, author of Wilder Girls ‘An utterly addictive story. I told myself just one more chapter well into the night.’ Emily Suvada, author of This Mortal Coil ‘Fierce, thrilling, and impossible to put down. Packed full of amazing friendships, plot twists and a desperate fight to survive’ C. G. Drews, author of The Boy Who Steals Houses
  asexual awareness week 2024: Rick Alex Gino, 2020-04-21 From the award-winning author of Melissa, the story of a boy named Rick who needs to explore his own identity apart from his jerk of a best friend. Rick's never questioned much. He's gone along with his best friend, Jeff, even when Jeff's acted like a bully and a jerk. He's let his father joke with him about which hot girls he might want to date even though that kind of talk always makes him uncomfortable. And he hasn't given his own identity much thought, because everyone else around him seemed to have figured it out. But now Rick's gotten to middle school, and new doors are opening. One of them leads to the school's Rainbow Spectrum club, where kids of many genders and identities congregate, including Melissa, the girl who sits in front of Rick in class and seems to have her life together. Rick wants his own life to be that . . . understood. Even if it means breaking some old friendships and making some new ones. As they did in their groundbreaking novel Melissa, in Rick, award-winning author Alex Gino explores what it means to search for your own place in the world . . . and all the steps you and the people around you need to take in order to get where you need to be.
  asexual awareness week 2024: Quiet Pine Trees T. R. Darling, 2021-02-04 'This is the one true star-map,’ he whispered. ‘Time fluctuates wildly beyond our solar system. Everything we know about distance is wrong.' Quiet Pine Trees is jet fuel for your imagination, a wrecking ball against writer's block. This collection features more than 500 enchanting microfiction stories, each one a miniature work of literary art. Using just a few words, these stories combine powerful imagery with compelling, high-concept themes to create snapshots of bigger, stranger worlds and inspire the reader. The stories in this volume span genres and galaxies alike: from science fiction about advanced time travel techniques and lovestruck androids, to fantasy about the best ways to wish and trees that long to speak, to chilling tales about dolls' eyes and the horror that awaits humanity between the stars.
  asexual awareness week 2024: Not Your Sidekick C. B. Lee, 2016 Resigned to a life without superpowers in a world full of them, Jess takes a paid internship where she helps a heinous supervillain and works with her longtime crush, but she soon stumbles on a massive plot.
  asexual awareness week 2024: The Bone Houses Emily Lloyd-Jones, 2019-09-24 Buffy the Vampire Slayer meets Sky in the Deep in this bewitching historical horror novel, perfect for fans of Holly Black and V.E. Schwab! Seventeen-year-old Aderyn (Ryn) only cares about two things: her family and her family's graveyard. And right now, both are in dire straits. Since the death of their parents, Ryn and her siblings have been scraping together a meager existence as gravediggers in the remote village of Colbren, which sits at the foot of a harsh and deadly mountain range that was once home to the fae. The problem with being a gravedigger in Colbren, though, is that the dead don't always stay dead. The risen corpses are known as bone houses, and legend says that they're the result of a decades-old curse. When Ellis, an apprentice mapmaker with a mysterious past, arrives in town, the bone houses attack with new ferocity. What is it that draws them near? And more importantly, how can they be stopped for good? Together, Ellis and Ryn embark on a journey that will take them into the heart of the mountains, where they will have to face both the curse and the deeply-buried truths about themselves. Equal parts classic horror novel and original fairy tale, The Bone Houses will have you spellbound from the very first page. An instant IndieBound bestseller!
  asexual awareness week 2024: The Heartland Nathan Filer, 2019 A powerful work of non-fiction and the natural sequel to his Costa Book of the Year Award-winning The Shock of the Fall.
  asexual awareness week 2024: I Who Have Never Known Men Jacqueline Harpman, 1997-04-08 A work of fantasy, I Who Have Never Known Men is the haunting and unforgettable account of a near future on a barren earth where women are kept in underground cages guarded by uniformed groups of men. It is narrated by the youngest of the women, the only one with no memory of what the world was like before the cages, who must teach herself, without books or sexual contact, the essential human emotions of longing, loving, learning, companionship, and dying. Part thriller, part mystery, I Who Have Never Known Men shows us the power of one person without memories to reinvent herself piece by piece, emotion by emotion, in the process teaching us much about what it means to be human.
  asexual awareness week 2024: I Was Born for This Alice Oseman, 2018-05-03 The third novel by the phenomenally talented Alice Oseman, the author of the 2021 YA Book Prize winning Loveless, Solitaire and graphic novel series Heartstopper – now a major Netflix series.
  asexual awareness week 2024: The Chapo Guide to Revolution Chapo Trap House, Felix Biederman, Matt Christman, Brendan James, Will Menaker, Virgil Texas, 2019-10-15 Instant New York Times bestseller “Howard Zinn on acid or some bullsh*t like that.” —Tim Heidecker The creators of the cult-hit podcast Chapo Trap House deliver a manifesto for everyone who feels orphaned and alienated—politically, culturally, and economically—by the lanyard-wearing Wall Street centrism of the left and the lizard-brained atavism of the right: there is a better way, the Chapo Way. In a guide that reads like “a weirder, smarter, and deliciously meaner version of The Daily Show’s 2004 America (The Book)” (Paste), Chapo Trap House shows you that you don’t have to side with either sinking ships. These self-described “assholes from the internet” offer a fully ironic ideology for all who feel politically hopeless and prefer broadsides and tirades to reasoned debate. Learn the “secret” history of the world, politics, media, and everything in-between that THEY don’t want you to know and chart a course from our wretched present to a utopian future where one can post in the morning, game in the afternoon, and podcast after dinner without ever becoming a poster, gamer, or podcaster. A book that’s “as intellectually serious and analytically original as it is irreverent and funny” (Glenn Greenwald, New York Times bestselling author of No Place to Hide) The Chapo Guide to Revolution features illustrated taxonomies of contemporary liberal and conservative characters, biographies of important thought leaders, “never before seen” drafts of Aaron Sorkin’s Newsroom manga, and the ten new laws that govern Chapo Year Zero (everyone gets a dog, billionaires are turned into Soylent, and logic is outlawed). If you’re a fan of sacred cows, prisoners being taken, and holds being barred, then this book is NOT for you. However, if you feel disenfranchised from the political and cultural nightmare we’re in, then Chapo, let’s go…
  asexual awareness week 2024: The Oxford Handbook of Sexual and Gender Minority Mental Health Esther D. Rothblum, 2020 The Oxford Handbook of Sexual and Gender Minority Mental Health provides an overview of the current research on the mental health of sexual and gender minority (SGM) populations. It is aimed at researchers conducting studies on the mental health of SGM populations, clinicians and researchers interested in psychiatric disorders that affect SGM populations, clinicians using evidence-based practice in the treatment of SGM patients/clients, students in mental health programs (clinical psychology, psychiatry, clinical social work, and psychiatric nursing), and policymakers. This chapter defines some terms and provides an overview of current and past SGM research methods--
  asexual awareness week 2024: The Gay Heritage Project Damien Atkins, Paul Dunn, Andrew Kushnir, 2018-09-24 This isn't your ordinary history project. In what has become an important piece of contemporary queer theatre, three of Canada's most gifted performers - Damien Atkins, Paul Dunn, and Andrew Kushnir - go on a search way past Google in order to find the history of gay people. The trio start their quest by looking back at their own lineages and move along to the library, the Yellow Brick Road, Ukraine, a game show, and a court. They discover handfuls of forgotten heroes and stories, but also visit some well-known names, compiling everything into one extraordinary history lesson that shines new light on contemporary gay culture. Equal parts personal curiosity, answers to the past, and information for the future, The Gay Heritage Project is a hilarious, thought-provoking meta tale that inspires, comforts, challenges, and empowers.
  asexual awareness week 2024: The Real Thing Ellen McCarthy, 2015-04-21 From a Washington Post weddings reporter who’s covered more than two hundred walks down the aisle comes a warm, witty, and wise book about relationships—the mystery, the science, and the secrets of how we find love and make it last. Ellen McCarthy has explored the complete journey of our timeless quest for “The One,” the Soul Mate, the Real Thing. This indispensable collection of insights—on dating, commitment, breakups, weddings, and marriage—gives us a window into enduring romance: • Go Online Already—“It’s a major time suck and a black hole of rejection and ambiguity and lies. But you know what? It also works.” • Keep It Confidential—“If you have to get something off your chest, pick someone whose wisdom you really trust, and who isn’t likely to spread the gossip to all your mutual acquaintances.” • Be Nice—“Brewing the morning coffee, touching the small of your partner’s back, filling their car with gas. These things add up to more relationship satisfaction than a fancy dinner on Valentine’s Day ever could.” The Real Thing features many more nuggets of wisdom, valuable information from the latest studies on commitment, candid testimonials from a variety of couples, and the personal story of McCarthy’s own search for “the keeper”—which begins, ironically, with a breakup the very same day she started as the Post’s full-time weddings reporter. Whether you’re looking for love or looking to strengthen your relationship, this book is a wonderful and clear-eyed map to the human heart. Praise for The Real Thing “A wise and compassionate look at how we love, along with some gentle suggestions for how we could get a little better at it . . . McCarthy has done something rare: She has written an optimistic book about love that is clear-eyed and unsentimental.”—The Washington Post “What a charming and captivating book this is! We never stop learning about love, and so many great lessons are within these pages.”—Elizabeth Gilbert, author of Eat, Pray, Love “My readers often say to me, ‘If we lived next door to each other, we'd be best friends.’ That is precisely what I wanted to say to smart, funny, self-effacing Ellen McCarthy after I finished reading The Real Thing. I loved every lesson laid out in a book that wouldn’t dare to call itself a field guide to marriage but amounts to as much on every page. This is a deeply useful little book.”—Kelly Corrigan, author of Glitter and Glue “Upbeat and sweet . . . This rich collection of stories charms and edifies, is filled with quotes from couples as well as experts in the field, and serves as not just stories to sigh over but lessons to apply.”—Booklist (starred review) “A fun read full of wonderful stories . . . McCarthy delivers a welcome combination of cynicism and poignancy in this account, which reads with the ease and accessibility of a self-help book.”—Library Journal “A comforting, realistic, and endearing portrait of modern relationships . . . This book will not only charm those in decades-old marriages, but also inspire those afraid love will never arrive for them.”—Publishers Weekly “Straight-talking . . . dating advice for adults of all ages.”—Kirkus Reviews
  asexual awareness week 2024: Once More with Chutzpah Haley Neil, 2022-02 Anxious eighteen-year-old Tally and her twin Max set off on a whirlwind high school exchange trip to Israel where she grapples with her Jewish identity, mental health, and sexuality.
  asexual awareness week 2024: Asexuality Asexuality Archive, 2012-06-01 Sometimes called “A Fourth Orientation”, asexuality is a sexual orientation characterized by a persistent lack of sexual attraction toward any gender. This book explores love, sex, and life, from the asexual point of view.This book is for anyone, regardless of orientation. Whether you're asexual, think you might be, know someone who is, or just want to learn more about what asexuality is (and isn't), there's something inside for you.This is one of the first books exclusively dedicated to the subject of asexuality as a sexual orientation. Written by an asexual, it discusses the topic from the inside.
  asexual awareness week 2024: Understanding Asexuality Anthony F. Bogaert, 2015 Asexuality can be defined as an enduring lack of sexual attraction. Thus, asexual individuals do not find (and perhaps never have) others sexually appealing. Some consider asexuality as a fourth category of sexual orientation, distinct from heterosexuality, homosexuality, or bisexuality. However, there is also recent evidence that the label asexual may be used in a broader way than merely as a lack of sexual attraction. People who say they have sexual attraction to others, but indicate little or no desire for sexual activity are also self-identifying as asexual. Distinct from celibacy, which refers to sexual abstinence by choice where sexual attraction and desire may still be present, asexuality is experienced by those having a lack or sexual attraction or a lack of sexual desire. More and more, those who identify as asexual are coming out, joining up, and forging a common identity. The time is right for a better understanding of this sexual orientation, written by an expert in the field who has conducted studies on asexuality and who has provided important contributions to understanding asexuality. This timely resource will be one of the first books written on the topic for general readers, and the first to look at the historical, biological, and social aspects of asexuality. It includes firsthand accounts throughout from people who identify as asexual. The study of asexuality, as it contrasts so clearly with sexuality, also holds up a lens and reveals clues to the mystery of sexuality.
  asexual awareness week 2024: Asexual Myths & Tales ELIZABETH. HOPKINSON, 2020-10-28 Once upon a time, our ancestors told tales of asexuality, symbolic stories that hint at other identities: a princess who grows a beard to escape marriage, a knight who forsakes his wife's bed to become a werewolf, a goddess with detachable parts, a planet where everyone is asexual. Drawn from many times and places, retold and reimagined for the 21st century, Elizabeth Hopkinson's second book of myths and tales brings asexuality out of the closet and gives it the history it has been denied.