As always, this is a flawed process. I’m just picking out the queer books I recognize, so I may have missed some. Let me know if I did! That being said, it appears that only three queer books made onto four or more of the biggest lists, which is a bit of a disappointment.
Appearing on six lists: The Emperor of Gladness by Ocean Vuong (also on NPR’s list)
Appearing on five lists: Baldwin: A Love Story by Nicholas Boggs (also on NPR’s list)
Appearing on four lists: Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid (also on NPR’s list)
Kelly also noted the books that appeared on the “Best Books of the Year So Far” lists, which went out around July. Stag Dance by Torrey Peters showed up on two of these mid-year lists, but none of the year-end lists. The River Has Roots by Amal El-Mohtar was on two mid-year lists and two year-end lists.