Jennifer Finney Boylan Anthologies books in order

Jennifer Finney Boylan's anthologies in order, including How Beautiful the Ordinary (2008), Truth and Dare (2011), and The Bitch Is Back (2016), collections covering identity, YA fiction, and women's writing.

Reading order

# Title Published Author Buy on Amazon
1 How Beautiful the Ordinary: Twelve Stories of Identity 2008 Jennifer Finney Boylan Buy
2 Truth and Dare: 20 Tales of Heartbreak and Happiness 2011 Jennifer Finney Boylan Buy
3 The Bitch Is Back 2016 Jennifer Finney Boylan Buy

Jennifer Finney Boylan has edited or contributed to three anthologies that reflect different areas of her interests as a writer and advocate. How Beautiful the Ordinary, published in 2008, is a young adult short story collection she edited focused on gender and sexual identity. The twelve stories come from a range of YA authors and were among the earlier anthologies to address LGBTQ themes directly for a teen audience.

Truth and Dare: 20 Tales of Heartbreak and Happiness, published in 2011, is a YA anthology she contributed to rather than edited. It brings together twenty authors writing short fiction about the emotional territory of adolescence, heartbreak, and finding direction.

The Bitch Is Back, published in 2016, collects essays by women writers on the experience of middle age. The title references the Elton John song and the anthology addresses how women experience their forties and fifties in contemporary culture. Boylan contributed an essay and the collection features a wide range of voices. It is notably different in register from her other anthology work, aimed at adult readers rather than young adults.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many books are in the Jennifer Finney Boylan Anthologies series?

There are three books in the Jennifer Finney Boylan Anthologies series, published between 2008 and 2016.

What is the first book in the Jennifer Finney Boylan Anthologies series?

The first book in the Jennifer Finney Boylan Anthologies series is How Beautiful the Ordinary: Twelve Stories of Identity, published in 2008.

What is How Beautiful the Ordinary about?

How Beautiful the Ordinary: Twelve Stories of Identity, published in 2008 and edited by Boylan, is a collection of twelve short stories for young adult readers on the theme of gender and sexual identity. Contributors include established YA authors, and the stories cover a range of experiences and perspectives.

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