Nimona

Although Stevenson makes no explicit mention of LGBTQ+ themes and identities within the narrative, Nimona can be read as an example of queer literature. The author’s identity and his other works inform this interpretation, as do some of the narrative elements in the story.

Stevenson, who started writing online under a female name and using she/her pronouns, has published various fictional and autobiographical works about queer identity. He is the creator behind the animated series She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018-2020), which earned a GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Kids and Family Programming in 2021. In 2020, he also published his coming out story in Oprah Magazine, later followed by The Weight of Them, a comic about his top surgery, in 2021. In 2022, he publicly announced that he uses he/him pronouns and has adopted the professional name N. D. Stevenson.

As for Nimona, the book includes thematic elements that are typical of queer literature, or at the very least queer-coded (i.e., characterized as queer through traits and mannerisms associated with LGBTQ+ identities). Shapeshifting, for example, is often used as a symbol for fluid identity. Nimona’s character, although not explicitly queer, questions and challenges gender norms.