NOSHA's Banned Books Club - Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Melinda Lo

A standout work of fiction exploring identity, queerness, and historical upheaval set in San Francisco’s Chinatown during the 1950s.

17-year-old Lily Hu can't remember exactly when the feeling took root—that desire to look, to move closer, to touch. But it definitely bloomed the moment she and Kathleen Miller walked under the flashing neon sign of a lesbian bar called the Telegraph Club. Suddenly, everything seemed possible.

But America in 1954 is not a safe place for two girls to fall in love, especially not in Chinatown. Red-Scare paranoia threatens everyone, including Chinese Americans like Lily. With deportation looming over her father—despite his hard-won citizenship—Lily and Kath risk everything to let their love see the light of day.

Winner of the National Book Award, Stonewall Book Award, and Asian/ Pacific American Award for Literature.

Challenged for: Sexual content, LGBTQ themes