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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (June 13, 2008)
books Unsolved Mysteries Recent titles explore human penchant for self-destruction, potential power of femme mystique The Stone Gods by Jeanette Win ter son; Harcourt, 2008; $24 hardcover With global warming, increased dependence on technology and a society where success is measured in growth and consumption, it’s not difficult to imagine a world that can no lon ger support our needs. Lesbian author Jeanette Winterson’s latest novel, The Stone Gods, takes readers to the ends of such worlds, so to speak, as she explores a seemingly human penchant for self-destruction. The story begins with Billie Crusoe at a time when planet Orbus has been all but destroyed by human carelessness. Billie, with a healthy skepticism for technology, is forced to join an early mission to the newly discovered Planet Blue—a pristine planet perfect to replace Or bus except for one thing: the dinosaurs. Among her shipmates are Captain Handsome, the sto ry’s Han Solo; Pink, a stereotypical bimbo; and Spike, a sexy Robo sapiens— a robot designed to save humans the responsibility of think ing. When things go wrong, as they inevita bly do when elements beyond human control interfere, Billie finds herself shipwrecked with en Spike as a human-instigated Ice Age descends j Glamour Girls: on Planet Blue. Femme/Femme In characteristic Winterson fashion, worlds Erotica repeat. Civilizations destroy themselves and Edited by Rachel Kramer Bussel; Haworth are reborn; the same mistakes are made over Press, 2006; $ 16.95 softcover again. As hopes for a new life fade for Billie Sugar and spice and everything nice—that’s and Spike on Planet Blue, so do hopes for Billy what femme/femme love is made of. Unfortu Crusoe, inadvertently abandoned on Easter nately for femme women who love and desire Island in 1774. Here, Billy finds another civi other femme women, not everyone sees the vis lization on the brink of collapse with two war ceral heat of such a combination. As editor/writer ring factions and a landscape decimated in the Rachel Kramer Bussel points out in the thought creation of the island’s giant stone heads. ful and engaging introduction to Glamour Girls: And then there is Billie Crusoe, abandoned Femme/Femme Erotica, an anthology in praise of as a baby, who finds herself caught between Tech the new love that dare not speak its name, some City and Wreck City at a time when the world is consider the double dose of sensual femininity to recovering from war and Robo sapiens have yet to be nothing more than “air on air.” She and 25 be developed beyond Spike’s head. other writers unapologetically, articulately and Readers familiar with Winterson’s previous erotically disagree. works will recognize the blurring of boundaries While the queer community has fought hard between the future and the past and the long to expand the mainstream’s understanding and ing for things lost and things not yet found. acceptance of same-sex love, it has struggled with The Stone Gods is an intricately layered nov its own discomfort with femme/femme fornica el—and part cautionary tale—that ultimately tion, seeing it as an affirmation of sexual stereo suggests we may have within ourselves all that types that the proper lesbian or bisexual should we need. eschew. Sex worker-centric stories including —Karen Kudej Kramer Bussel’s “Lap Dance Lust,” Lori Seiki’s “Diary of a Lost Child, Part I” and Jen Collins’ “The G String” are a partial response to such misconceptions and offer peeks iQto the unique world within which femme-loving femme sex pro fessionals explore their mutual attractions. Tantalizing insights into the potential power of the femme mystique are further revealed in stories such as “Two Girls in the Basement” by Cheryl B. and “Dressing Desire” by Tenille Brown, each of which tells the story of a bi-curious woman, a character increasingly familiar to the real world of femme romance and lust. It is precisely this real world that Kramer Bus sel and her mostly female literary companions present in this often thoughtful, frequently de lightful celebration of the femme/femme love continuum. Whether a nervous novice removing another woman’s clothing for the first time or a confident daughter of Sapphos urgently press ing her painted lips against those of another, the femmes in this collection prove that they and their passion are more than merely “air on air.” —Theresa “Darklady" Reed ft) Live Strong. ^et J Free Walk-In HIV Testing ... and Anonymous and Needle-Free Results in one week or 20 minutes Monday Nights 5:30 to 7:30 Washington County Health Clinic - Beaverton 12550 SW 2nd (between Hall & Watson) For more information, call us at 503-846-4 or check ont www.co.washinQton.or.us/hiv ¡Se Habla Español! TALK IS CHEAP, HCTI0I1 TALKS! r f 14 * Portland: Vancouver: mw Everett: e« “'» Tacoma ’•'/-• a ’ -3 1 ■ 1 to play’ - !-4 À CHAT, PERSONALS, FORUMS * ST Unlimited VIP Subscription AS LOW AS $1.77 per day! (8 weeks package S99.00) which way • • 503-222-6USA 360-696-5254 206-753-2429 425-405-2429 253-359-2429 LIVELINE MJ wondering ■ Ji Mult. 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