j u . t o u t ▼ july 18. 1997 ▼ 19
BOOKING INTO
SUMMER
And that calls for a reading list. Tuck into these covers when you’re sporting lycra by the pool
or ducking under a cafe awning waiting for the sun.
▼
s the summer smells
remind us o f days
gone by, so too do
they bring back the
words we read dur
ing long summer vacations where
our pent-up energies could be wast
ed bothering our parents or poring
over volumes long-awaited. Even
while we know there are bills to be
paid, or dishes done, or other duties
too numerous to recount, the sum
mer light is breaking through the
window in fractured beams and illu
minating the chair where we long to
sit and delve deep into literaryt plea
sure. To paraphrase a famous
dessert company’s slogan, Life's
short, read first. " Dive in.
by Christopher D. Cuttone and Beren deMotier
Sharon Gedan. Naiad Press, 1997; $14.95 paper.
Extremely practical, useful and down-to-earth
guide to starting, keeping and maintaining love
in your life.
Cross Purposes: Lesbians, Feminists
and the Limits o f Alliance edited
by Dana Heller. Indiana
University Press, 1997; $35
cloth, $14.95 paper. The role of
lesbians in the feminism of the
'70s and the role of feminism
today in queer politics is explored
in this scholarly work. Though queer
activists claim little to do with the les
bian feminism that emerged in the
’70s, Lillian Faderman writes in her
afterword to the book: “(D|espite the
annoying refusal of queers to credit les
bian-feminism. much of queer theory
seems to be old wine in new bottles.”
Challenging and interesting.
Lesbian Words: State o f the Art edited by
Randy Turoff. Richard Kasak, 1995; $10.95
paper. Alluring array of essays by writers such
as Judy Grahn, Eileen Myles, Dorothy Allison,
Jewelle Gomez and Pat Califia. From menstru
al blood to vampires to facing the possibility of
“
— BdM
Fiction Women
Flaming Iguanas by Erika Lopez. Simon &
Schuster Editions, 1997; $18.50 cloth. A book to
give you new faith in mainstream publishing
houses. A fascinating monologue, memoir, road
book and work of art. Major grrrl eneigy. Lopez
challenges all definitions and shoots her way into
a 21st-century mindset of “anything goes.”
Strong, intelligent and straight from the gut, or
possibly six inches lower.
Passion's Shadow by Nicole Conn. Berkley,
1997; $5.99 paper. By the author of Claire o f the
Moon. Lesbian melodrama with sex, high heels,
smoking and lots of drinking.
Loving Wanda Beaver by Alison Baker.
Chronicle Books, 1997; $11.95 paper. A collec
tion of stories and a
novella by O. Henry
Award-winner Baker.
The title story is bril
liant. Not all lesbian
stuff by any means,
but when it comes to
articulate, intelligent,
capturing-the-
moment fiction, she
has the goods.
Fat Me by Linda
Jaivin.
Broadway
Books, 1997; $20
cloth. A huge best
seller in Australia, this
book will make your
eyes pop out and your
mouth form the sound “whoa!” by the end of the
first story. Take this to the beach, but not alone or
in a crowded place—who knows what you might
feel inclined to do. That is, if you can take a lot of
het sex mixed in with your lesbian encounters.
Amazing writing.
In the Mood by Robbi Summers. Naiad Press,
1997; $11.95 paper. Your basic mild-mannered
lesbian erotica.
The Love o f Friends: An Anthology o f Gay
and lesbian Letters to Lovers and Friends
edited by Constance Jones, with research by Val
Clark. Simon and Schuster, 1997; $26 cloth. A
pure delight for fans of the epistolary arts. From
May Sarton to Horace Walpole, from Renée
Vivien to T.E. Lawrence, many of the most
famous and infamous lovers of their sex are rep
resented by their own words. Beginning with a
letter from Sappho herself, this is not a
book to be missed.
C hristopher’s Dreams by Robert
Bosnak. Delta Trade Paperbacks, 1997;
$9.95 paper. A Jungian analyst specializing
in dream work, Bosnak offers an updated
version of his now-classic title Dreaming
with an AIDS Patient. To his moving
account of a man with AIDS and the heal
ing relationship that changed both their
lives, Bosnak adds an inspirational continu
ation based on his work with people for
whom protease inhibitors offer new hope
for the future.
The Least o f These My Brethren by
Daniel J. Baxter, M.D. Harmony Books,
1997; $24 cloth. Bringing us the AIDS
story no one has told, Baxter expresses the
tragedy of HIV among the homeless, drug users
N on fiction Women
Sexual State o f the Union by Susie Bright.
Simon & Schuster, 1997; $23 cloth. I really have
and impoverished—people who are already
marginalized and least likely to get the help they
need. But this is not a tale of despair; the author
recounts his experiences in New York’s largest
designated AIDS center and the reasons for
hope he found there.
Inventing the A ID S Virus by Peter H.
Duesberg. Regnery, 19%; $24.95 cloth. This
long-awaited release by the most prominent and
persistent critic of HIV as the cause of AIDS
presents a decade’s worth of evidence previous
ly revealed only in scientific journals.
Duesberg’s weighty book questions the founda
tions of $7 billion in AIDS research spent annu
ally in the United States, and exposes major
flaws in current AIDS theory.
Get On with It: The Gay and Lesbian Guide
to Getting Online by Richard Laermer.
Broadway Books, 1997; $18 paper. If you’re
still not on-line (in other words, if you live in a
cave or a tree house), then get with the program.
This resource provides the skinny on hooking
up, communicating effectively, dealing with pri
vacy issues, locating the information you want
and learning everything you ever wanted to
know (but were afraid to ask your co-workers)
about sex on the Net.
to hand it to her, whether you agree with her or
not, she is a bright mind and a fine writer. This
book is personal essay/political analysis; or is it
personal analysis/political essay? You decide. It’s
worth it.
The Loving Lesbian by Claire McNab and
AIDS as lesbians.
Passions Between Women by Emma
Donoghue. Harper Perennial, 1996; $13 paper.
A scholarly and fascinating history of lesbians
in Britain from 1668 to 1801 by the author of
the novels Hood and Stir-fry. Drawing on med
ical evidence, historical record and literature,
Donoghue makes the case that passionate sexu
al relationships between women were far more
common than the current literature suggests.
For all of us who read and re-read Surpassing
the Love o f Men as part of our coming out
process, this comes as a welcome addition to the
volumes which detail our history.
Continued on page 21