Greetings from Amazon.com Delivers Gay Studies
Andrew Holleran's first collection of short stories kicks off this month's Amazon.com Delivers Gay Studies. Plus biographies, celebrity profiles, and more. "In September, the Light Changes" by Andrew Holleran http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0786864613/entertainmentsit "Who cares what straight people think about us?" complains one of Andrew Holleran's gay protagonists. "I don't care if they understand what I do in bed. I don't even understand what I do in bed, I could care less what they think about it." And just as many of the gay men in these 16 stories (only three of which have been previously published) refuse--or simply feel no need--to explain themselves, so too does Holleran explore his characters' lives with no effort to justify them. The stories are crafted with such polished prose--slyly humorous and achingly poignant in turn--that one is immediately struck by their beauty. Every story seems to have its share of brilliant dialogue or descriptive passages, like the storyteller in "The Hamburger Man" who "didn't have the very best gossip--but ... belonged to that class of people who know one or two people who do." And in the final story, which gives the book its title, Holleran shows that he's equally adept at capturing the fleeting beauty of nature, in a setting "annealed by a delicate silver light, the most beautiful light of the whole year, a light that was both warm (if one lay in the sun, as he did now) and cool (if one stood in the shade)." "Siegfried Sassoon: The Making of a War Poet, 1886-1918" by Jean Moorcroft Wilson http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0415923255/entertainmentsit This new biography appears in the midst of a small Sassoon revival. Although not the sprightliest of writers, Jean Moorcroft Wilson gives a comprehensive and well-rounded impression of Sassoon, drawing on much new material, including both sides of his correspondence with T.E. Lawrence. "Unlike the many writers who lead sedentary lives," Wilson notes, "[Sassoon] was a man of action caught up in the bloodiest conflict in history." In the early 1920s, still glowing from the success of his poems of the First World War, Sassoon had imagined he would write a "'Madame Bovary' dealing with sexual inversion." But the poet who patrolled no man's land at night and whose initially romantic verses gradually came to encompass all the horrors of trench warfare could not find the courage to declare his love for men. One of the benefits of this late biography, as Wilson points out, is that she can now write openly of what Sassoon could not. There's another biography of Sassoon--this one a complete life--by John Stuart Roberts, currently available from Amazon.co.uk: http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/1860661513/entertainmentsit "All Ears: Cultural Criticism, Essays, and Obituaries" by Dennis Cooper http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1887128336/entertainmentsit Dennis Cooper is best known as the author of transgressive novels such as "Guide" and "Try," but he's also done his share of journalism. "All Ears" collects work from a variety of publications, including a profile of Sonny Bono that originally appeared in George and pieces from Spin on former Husker Du frontman Bob Mould and homeless HIV-positive youth in Los Angeles. Along the way, he asks Keanu Reeves if he's gay ("No ... but ya never know"), ponders the fascination with heroin among alternative bands from the early '90s, and meditates upon the deaths of River Phoenix, William S. Burroughs, and Kurt Cobain. "All Ears" is a slim but compelling volume that speaks to pop culture with probing intensity and authenticity. "A Legal Guide for Lesbian and Gay Couples" by Hayden Curry et al. http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0873374959/entertainmentsit Nolo Press legal guides provide useful and accurate information on how to manage your own affairs or, failing this, how to hire a lawyer and negotiate the court system. The rapid changes in gay and lesbian life in the past 30 years have not been reflected in the legal codes of most states, and without enforceable written agreements, gay and lesbian people may find such crucial matters as inheritance, legal guardianship, child custody, and support left to the whim of a judge or state agency. As the writers of this volume (the 10th edition of a book first published in 1980) point out, "married couples' relationships are defined by law," while lesbian and gay couples have the freedom--and responsibility--to create their own legal relationships. Agreements drawn up in advance provide guidance for a time when all is not moonbeams and madness. Tear-out forms and sample documents are included. "Wilma Loves Betty and Other Hilarious Gay & Lesbian Parodies" edited by Julie K. Trevelyan and Scott Brassart http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/155583499X/entertainmentsit Your favorite TV shows, movies, and social phenomena are approached with a queer sensibility in this anthology. Wilma and Betty finally get it on, and although Batman and Robin don't, it's not for lack of trying on Robin's part. Ex-gays get their share of ridicule, but there's also some good-natured ribbing of earnest homosexuals, including "Heather Has a Mommy and a Daddy" and "Rejection Letter from Bedsheet Books, Publisher of Lesbian Novels," in which the editor chastises the applicant for giving her protagonists unandrogynous names and creating sympathetic male characters, then queries, "Why doesn't your heroine have a cat?" In Jeff Black's hilarious "6,240 and Counting," Larry Kramer lambastes gay men for not doing enough to prevent Andrew Lloyd Webber from killing American musical theater, and reminds his readers of what it means to be Larry Kramer: "I was called a genius by the very people who invented the guillotine!" The mysterious Saint delivers parodies of half a dozen prominent gay and lesbian authors, including "Felicity Guano" and "Edmund Wimp." While the script for the "Chandler Comes Out" episode of "Friends" drags on far too long, and the revelations about Nancy Drew's best friend, George, are old hat to anyone who's read Mabel Maney's "Nancy Clue" and "Hardly Boys" books, there are certainly enough funny and clever bits here to bring a smile to just about anybody's face. And, as the editors remind us, "Parody is constitutionally protected. So nyah, nyah, nyah." ****** You'll find more great books, articles, and interviews in Amazon.com's Gay & Lesbian section at Books Home Page
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