This is an absolutely incredible anthology all centred around the queer voice! Not one of the essays detracted from the overall message. It is always so powerful in these anthologies getting to hear a wide range of perspectives around the one topic. Absolutely will be recommending!

this is a vital collection of essays from the LGBTQIA community and i would absolutely recommend!

"Every new generation that grows up can’t necessarily understand how it was before – how the current normal was achieved. It is normal for each person to assume that where they’re at has always been that way. We just want to be able to love the way we love and be left alone, be left in peace. At the same time, the way we are poses a huge challenge perceived as a provocation to society."

The essays cover a wide variety of subject matters and experiences and highlights the gaps in the education system and how as a whole we have a far way to go. Essay collections are easy to dip in and out of over a period of time, and i thought this collection was accessible and digestible.

It was informative and empowering and some of the things i read will stay with me. Obviously this book comes with trigger warnings, so please check them out before reading!

Due to a sudden, unexpected passing in the family a few years ago and another more recently and my subsequent (mental) health issues stemming from that, I was unable to download this book in time to review it before it was archived as I did not visit this site for several years after the bereavements. This meant I didn't read or venture onto netgalley for years as not only did it remind me of that person as they shared my passion for reading, but I also struggled to maintain interest in anything due to overwhelming depression. I was therefore unable to download this title in time and so I couldn't give a review as it wasn't successfully acquired before it was archived. The second issue that has happened with some of my other books is that I had them downloaded to one particular device and said device is now defunct, so I have no access to those books anymore, sadly.

This means I can't leave an accurate reflection of my feelings towards the book as I am unable to read it now and so I am leaving a message of explanation instead. I am now back to reading and reviewing full time as once considerable time had passed I have found that books have been helping me significantly in terms of my mindset and mental health - this was after having no interest in anything for quite a number of years after the passings. Anything requested and approved will be read and a review written and posted to Amazon (where I am a Hall of Famer & Top Reviewer), Goodreads (where I have several thousand friends and the same amount who follow my reviews) and Waterstones (or Barnes & Noble if the publisher is American based). Thank you for the opportunity and apologies for the inconvenience.

This vital collection of essays from the LGBTQ+ community is a powerful read, that looks to the future and designes a manifesto change that is needed for a fairwr world. A book that will stay with me for a long time!

I was excited to read this book, as I recently realised I am not actually straight as I thought for the first 30-odd years of my life! You might wonder how it took me so long to figure this out, but as an asexual person who grew up under Section 28 in the UK, I simply didn't have the information or community I needed to realise I didn't fit the heteronormative ideology that I was exposed to growing up. So the chance to hear from a whole range of different voices within the LGBTQ+ Community was extremely exciting to me. And I'm glad to say the book didn't disappoint.

The essays cover a wide variety of subject matters and experiences, some of which I found myself highlighting as I realised I'd had similar experiences too, leaving me to wonder how it had taken me so long to realise I wasn't straight when all the signs were there! But other experiences were completely new to me, and I was made abundantly aware how privileged I had been to grow up thinking I fit the "norm" that society expects, especially when I ended up marrying into a cis-het presenting relationship (my wife came out as transgender 10 years into our marriage). Reading the essays made me reflect on how much I have already learned about myself and the LGBTQ+ Community, but more importantly how much I still have to learn.

The book also reminded me of the importance of more inclusive education and better representation within the media, to help combat the ongoing homophobia and transphobia that is becoming rife once again within society. The essays showed me how far we have come as a whole, and how far we still have to go. And they sparked a fire within me to be a part of that. I would highly recommend this book for anyone wanting to learn more about the lives of those within the LGBTQ+ Community.

This collection covered so many different topics and concepts from the LGBTQ+ community, while still keeping the essays and book short. It is extremely readable and easy to follow for starters to the community, it is easy to delve in and out of and engages the reader suitably. It does no just centre on the white and western world, and allows us to see that there is still a lot to do around the world. These essays imagine the future of queer lives and the queer community and sets out the change that needs to happen for a better, brighter, and equal future. A must read for anyone in today's world. I hope future generations read this in shock that their world was once like this.

There is no question about the fact that ‘We Can Do Better Than This’ is an important read.

It’s an also hard book to read. I often found myself not being able to read more than one, maybe two essays at once. They are all powerful, moving and angering in their own ways, and they stay in your mind for a long time after you have finished reading the last word.

I’m lucky to live in a relatively liberal country, a country with many issues, and yet in some ways with a situation much better than others. But I’m also from a country, where LGBTQ+ rights are not freely accepted.

It has been a hard read, some of the stories in ‘We Can Do Better Than This’ are so utterly heartbreaking, but I think everyone should read it and listen to the voices in this book, and try to make some changes.

‘We Can Do Better Than This’ is both a personal story of so many people, and a call to action. And it will definitely stay in my mind for a long time.

this was such a varied and interesting collection of essays about all the necessary changes and progress needed for the future of so many countries across the world and the lgbtqia+ communities who have already suffered so much. it's said all the time that things are so much better than the should be, stop complaining, but this isn't good enough!! there's so much more to fix

An important, informative read.
Reading the experiences of LGBTQ+ persons is heartbreakingly sad, devastatingly disappointing but also wonderfully hopeful. Not one of these voices will apologise for who they are and nor should they. The world needs to become so much less ignorant and judgemental and embrace all humans, no matter their gender identity, sexuality, race or anything else they may identify as.
There is so much more to be done and even picking up this book is a start.
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Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and Amelia Abraham for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Really good; a diverse line-up covering a broad range of issues that surpass the typical conversations in LGBT anthologies. Well-thought-out and very weighty; I also bought a copy after reading this as a pdf.

"At the time of writing, homosexuality is still illegal in sixty-nine countries".

This book is needed and tells experience after experience of stories that for many of us, seem worlds away or no longer possible. Upsetting, eye opening, essential reading.

Thank you NetGalley for the Arc.

We Can do Better (Amelia Abraham) dreams of better futures. This book allows its contributors to dream of, and advocate for, a world where members of the lgbt+ community may live in safety and achieve their dreams. The contributors live in different parts of the world and occupy different spaces within their communities, making this a diverse collection. However, key themes emerge, including violence and the criminalization of queer identities. We can do better offers both a depressing and optimistic view of the world. It is well worth a read.

I was really impressed with the range and scope of these essays, covering LGBTQ+ issues across the spectrums of gender, sexual orientation, age, race, geographic location, and class. I was particularly happy to see essays by older queer people, and one on the importance of queer history. I would have liked more on bisexuality and biphobia (both within and outside the queer community) but that aside, it’s a great collection.

A great collection of essays by members of the LGBTQ+ community about their personal life and experiences and ideas/claims/tips for their existence amongst eachother and with others.It covers topics from security, healthcare and visibility till dating, family and organizing themselves, partly by celebrities. I liked especially the stories about non-white members of the community, asexual people, disabled or homeless queers or sports and non-binary existence. It´s also important that their rights aren´t regarded in every country, often being illegal, people making initiatives and how straight people communitcate best with queer ones, f.e. parents hearing from their children being LGBTQ+. Recommended for everyone!
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for an ARC ebook in exchange for an honest review.

A tough and sometimes brutal collection of eclectic essays that is thoughtful and thought-provoking. An absolute must-read.

Such a necessary book! A must read. It really is necessary to have anthologies like these published, with such a breadth of topics and authors.

We Can Do Better Than This is a beautiful collection of essays which covers a wide spectrum of the LGBTQIA+ experiences. Amelia Abraham has collected a powerful array of stories which really make you think, and which provide a rich exploration of what it means to be LGBTQIA+ in the 21st century.

What I really enjoyed about this is collection is that it is both a collection of stories which highlight a range of experiences, but it also gives insight into how people in general can help to better the world for the LGBTQIA+ community.

I would highly recommend this to everyone. It's a great read, and one I'll definitely be recommending.

Im not used to essays but this book gave an interesting perspective on lgbtqia+ issues from individuals who deal with it first hand. As a queer youth not only was it educating but made me feel seen when there isn’t much lgbtqia+ non fiction.
Would definitely reccomended to others both lgbtqia+ and other wanting to learn more.

This was a really interesting compilation of essays from queer writers on how we can make society and the world better, or at least a bit more equal, for LGBTQ+ people. There was such a great variety of voices that contributed to this anthology that each essay felt really individual and nothing felt overdone or hackneyed. Definitely recommended.

A really great read! I read Amelia Abraham’s previous book, Queer Intentions and found it really educational. This book takes it to another level. I felt so seen in many of these essays, as a multiply disabled queer and trans person, that’s really rare. And I also felt like I was able to learn more about people within the LGBTQ+ community that I don’t get to see often as a white western person. This is a book I’ll be recommending to my friends, queer, trans and allies. Through the final section, I really could see some ways we can make impactful change and it has helped be feel a little less hopeless.