40
«fiftie
it s
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S anctuary
By Paul M on-
ette. A lyson Pub
lications, 1999;
$9.95 softcover.
N
o Quasi
modo here,
but Sanctu
ary does share a
theme or two
with the tale of
the friendly
hunchback—
that it’s OK to
be ugly isn’t one of them, however.
Paul Monette’s posthumously published gay
fairy tale tackles a lot of issues— sexual orienta
tion, vegetarianism, pride and prejudice, trans-
genderism and transsexualism, xenophobia and
homophobia, the environment, interspecies
dating, etc.—so it probably has themes in com
mon with half the books in the library. But it is
a refreshing idea: a fairy tale that’s not some
dark, Freudian mind-control device designed to
produce generation after generation of heteros
with sexual hang-ups.
Like all good fairy tales, Sanctuary is fairly
predictable. Innocent folks get in deep doo-
doo, true love saves the day and sends the bad
dudes packing. There aren’t many people in
the story— luckily, the animals can talk. What’s
more endearing than talking animals? A really
sweet love story, that’s what.
It’s a slim volume, easy and fun to read.
Recommended for dare-to-be-different parents
of tolerant children, as well as homos hankerin’
for mythological sustenance.
—Christopher D. Cuttone
Buy the book
N ice G irls D o n ’ t W ear C ha -C ha H eels !
By Leigh Rutledge. Alyson Publications, 1999;
$10.95 softcover.
T
aking the reader on a tour from the sublime
to the ridiculous, Nice Girls Don’t Wear
Cha-Cha Heels! is a collection of camp lines
from classic films. It’s the perfect bathroom
book and guaranteed to tickle your funny
bone— if not other body parts.
A few samples: “Look, if you think you’re
gonna get back in my panties, forget it. There’s
one asshole in there already.” (Kathleen Turner
in Crimes of Passion, 1984 )
“You probably haven’t had a good lay in
years. Your legs have been together longer than
the Lennon Sisters.” (Bette Midler in Stella,
1990.)
“That’s a lot of man you’re carrying in those
boots, stranger.” (John Carradine to Sterling
Hayden in Johnny Guitar, 1954.)
“It wasn’t the first time I went to bed with a
Just Out presents some holiday gift ideas
for queers with literary leanings
guy and woke up with a note.” (Susan Saran
don in Bull Durham, 1988.)
“When I’m down on my knees, I ain’t pray
ing.” (Faye Dunaway in Doc, 1971.)
—Oriana Green
F or the L ife of Y our D og
By Greg Louganis and Betsy Sikora Siino. Pocket
Books, 1999; $14 softcover.
S
ure you knew he could dive, but did you
know he could breed dogs? Harlequin
Great Danes to be exact. In fact, this book
asserts that Louganis’ first love, his highest call
ing, is the care and understanding of dogs— his
and everyone else’s.
While foremost a guide to living with dogs
in sickness and in health, this book does offer
glimpses into Louganis’ life. His health is good,
and he credits his dogs with having their paws
in that.
Louganis also trains dogs and lives with at
least five other breeds. As most dog owners do,
he has made extraordinary adjustments to his -
lifestyle to live in harmony with so many ani
mals. He is also very involved in the dog show
circuit and has many awards for his efforts.
Though it is a perfectly useful primer on dog
selection and care, the personal stories from
Louganis’ life that inform each section make
this book stand out from the pack of similar
books.
In the classic manner of queers everywhere,
Louganis makes no bones about who his family
is. “Each of my dogs is unique, and I share a
special relationship with each one,” he writes.
Share it with a pooch you love.
— Rose Green
B oy M eets B oy
Edited by Lawrence Schimel. St. Martin’s Press,
1999; $12.95 softcover.
G
ot a single guy with a sense of humor on
your shopping list? This fun little collec
tion of essays on dating and sex for the
modem gay man just might inspire him to get
out more. There are plenty of good lines he
could lift and put to use, such as: “You have a
face I could wake up to for the rest of my life.”
(That it was uttered in a leather bar only
makes the tale richer.)
Very candid and confessional in tone, each
writer shares an episode of his life related to
dating and relationships. In “Giving It Up,”
Matthew Rettenmund writes about his first
kiss: “He loved women too much to ever be
gay, but his confident kiss, forceful and hot,
slapped onto me in his apartment with a clue
less straight comrade just out of sight around a
comer, made me finally feel 100 percent gay.”
There is also a section on falling out of
love. One brief paragraph from Michael Las-
sell’s erotic entry about answering a personal ad
Different Drivers. Different Roads. One Car.