Flamer

Flamer (2020) is Mike Curato’s first graphic novel and winner of the Lambda Literary Award for Children’s and Young Adult Literature in 2021. Set in the 1990s, it is a semi-autobiographical story about a teenage boy named Aiden Navarro, who struggles to come to terms with the realization that he is gay during the final weeks of Boy Scouts summer camp. The text explores themes of Self-Acceptance, bullying, Systemic Discrimination, and the challenges of Growing Up as Someone Deemed “Other.” The novel’s artwork is predominantly black and white, but occasionally employs oranges and reds to denote things of symbolic, thematic, or emotional importance. Despite winning awards and receiving positive reviews from critics, because of its inclusion of LGTBQ content, the book was the fourth-most banned and challenged book in 2022, according to the American Library Association (“Top 13 Most Challenged Books of 2022.” Ala.org.)

This guide refers to the 2020 Henry Holt and Company edition of the text.

Content Warning: The source material contains quotations of racist and anti-gay language. This guide replicates these slurs in direct quotes only where it is necessary to preserve the author’s intended use of language; otherwise it discusses the incidents.