Edmund White’s new book is a delicious read. More than just a memoir of his years living “inside the pearl” that is Paris, it is also a peripatetic journey through France, Britain and Morocco. Along the way, the reader will
Edmund White’s New Memoir is a Delicious Read. Read More »
Concluding the Tales of the City series was perhaps Armistead Maupin’s most challenging literary task. Concluding an epic novel–let alone a series of novels–involves not only revisiting the key characters and wrapping up their stories, but also the inclusion of
He gave the Beat Movement its name, witnessed its history from beginning to end and was an accomplished author in his own right, but you probably haven’t heard of him. Certainly this queer reader hadn’t heard of Herbert Huncke until
American Hipster: The Surprising Inspiration for the Beat Movement Read More »
Allan Gurganus’s new book, Local Souls, is a collection of three novellas. They share a common location–the fictional town of Falls, North Carolina–and also a common theme: survival. They are rendered in a style that is at once lyrical
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In his new short story, “There’s a Small Hotel,” Andrew Holleran returns to the themes he explored in his last novel, Grief. Once again, Mr. Holleran presents us with a main character who is wrestling with lingering memories. But
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Everything Begins and Ends at the Kentucky Club is an excellent book. I’m not the first to notice this. It won the Lambda Award last month and before that, Benjamin Alire Saenz’s collection of short stories won the coveted Faukner
Benjamin Alire Saenz is a Great American Short Story Writer. Read More »
Some of the finest non-fiction crime writing can be found in David McConnell’s new book, American Honor Killings. At it’s best, Mr. McConnell’s writing compares favorably to Truman Capote’s In Cold Blood and Norman Mailer’s Executioner’s Song. It
David McConnell’s Honor Killings is a Remarkable Literary Achievement. Read More »
In his new book, The Testament of Mary, Colm Toibin humanizes the Jesus story by telling it from the perspective of his Jewish mother. The Mary Mr. Toibin renders here lives her life in fear. She fears the semi-hidden
Colm Toibin’s The Testament of Mary is Beautifully Written. Read More »
Amidst all the successes of the worldwide struggle for LGBT rights, something has undeniably been lost. What that ‘something’ is can be difficult to define, but perhaps the best word for it might simply be, “sleaze.” The etymology of the
Michal Witkowski’s Love Time is a Literary, Lyrical Homage to Sleaze. Read More »
There’s a conceit to most biographies. The biographer does the research, interviews the surviving witnesses and from these often disparate accounts, hobbles together a narrative that bears the imprimatur of omniscience. Cynthia Carr’s new David Wojnarowicz biography is different. In
Cynthia Carr’s Ground-Breaking David Wojnarowicz Biography is Superb. Read More »