PRAISE

“Curato’s… wrenching and fascinating saga carries this quartet through affections, betrayals, careers, and simply staying alive amid threats of anti-gay and anti-immigrant violence. The three-dimensional characters and superb plotting draw on both stereotypes and realities associated with Asian Americans and LGBTQIA+ people. The work also includes depictions of sex and features snappy, humorous double-entendres. The excellent, emotionally rich art veers from rich blues into mauves, augmented with triumphal yellows toward the end. VERDICT: Curato’s immersive, heartwarming graphic novel is highly recommended.”
— LIBRARY JOURNAL *starred review

“This is—more than anything, perhaps—a story about how the family we’re born into may compel us to create a chosen family, and how our own experiences might inspire us to expand our circle of care… A tender and compelling coming-of-age story.”
— KIRKUS *starred review

“Gaysians is a brilliant and beautifully drawn celebration of family and belonging—the perfect book to peruse when you need a boost of pride.”
— BOOKPAGE *starred review

“Children's author/illustrator Mike Curato's adult debut is a gorgeously vulnerable graphic novel about the joys and challenges of finding family among Seattle's gay Asians.”
— SHELF AWARENESS *starred review

“This warmhearted tale of found family will charm and entertain readers, some of whom might want to keep a box of Kleenex handy.”
— PUBLISHERS WEEKLY

“Gaysians is a beautiful prism of queer Asian/Asian American experience, grounding and groundbreaking. You’ll feel seen, called out, held, beloved. I laughed, I cried, I healed a little or a lot—but I’ll never forget what this book showed me.”
—ALEXANDER CHEE, author of How to Write an Autobiographical Novel

“I've been hunting for books like this my whole life; this story broke my heart and healed it."
—MAIA KOBABE, author of Genderqueer

“A savory feast of heartbreak and joy that proves the old adage that the more specific something is, the more universal it can be. Life is in the details, and Mike Curato is a master at rendering them with life-affirming beauty.”
—STEVEN ROWLEY, author of The Guncle

“This graphic novel is a call for empathy and understanding, through the laughter and tears.”
—ABRAHAM CHANG, author of 888 Love and the Divine Burden of Numbers

AWARDS & ACCOLADES

Best Books of 2025
Kirkus Reviews

Earphones Award
Audiofile Magazine

PRESS

“Struggling Together: PW Talks with Mike Curato,”
Publishers Weekly

“Graphic novel is author’s love letter to Seattle and chosen family”.
The Seattle Times

“REVIEW: Mike Curato’s ‘Gaysians’ celebrates chosen family, Asian identity,”
KTLA5 (Nexstar)

“It is going to SLAYSIAN the house down”: Why Mike Curato’s new graphic novel is making waves,”
Queerty

“Mike Curato is finally getting the queer Asian community talking”
Joy Sauce

“Books: Mike Curato is a Main Character”
KUOW/NPR

“Mike Curato: Write Honestly and Vulnerably,”
Writers Digest

“Food as First Language: Mike Curato on the Validation of Learning to Cook Filipino Food,”
Lit Hub

“Author Chat with Mike Curato”
Books and Boba

“‘It has to get ugly in order for it to be beautiful sometimes’: Mike Curato on his latest, Gaysians”
The Comics Journal