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Now that the holiday rush has subsided, you finally have time to curl up in the chilly January evenings with a good book. Here are 40 of our current faves.
Fiction
Girls with Hammers, Cynn Chadwick (Alice Street): Lesbian dramas are a dime a dozen but when was the last time you read one centered around a female carpenter instead of, say, a private investigator or a cop? You got it, in Chadwick’s sophomore release, Lily, the head of Girls with Hammers, is back dealing with mysterious strangers and lesbian drama. http://www.haworthpress.com — Diane Anderson-Minshall
With a Rough Tongue: Femmes Write Porn, ed. Amber Dawn & Trish Kelly (Arsenal Pulp Press): Complied into a paperback that’s not too difficult to read with one hand, these femme written porn tales start off where other lesbian erotica ends. Whether it’s two cowgirls, a drag queen and a cabbie, or a group of femme fatales, these girls are not afraid to write about queer sex at its most lustful levels. http://www.arsenalpulp.com — Lauren Marie Fleming
A Girl Like Che Guevara, Teresa de la Caridad Doval (Soho): Sixteen year old Lourdes is a proud revolutionary who spends the summers of 1982 tiling tobacco fields to prove her dedication to Fidel Castro. She’s a study in contradictions, especially when she develops a crush on her roommate at camp; in Cuba’s socialist regime same-sex relationships are forbidden. When Lourdes realizes the many things she longs to do (like wear smuggled Jordache jeans and watch American cartoons) are denied to her by the Revolution she serves, the girl must question her own allegiances and why she wants to be like Che Guevara. http://www.sohopress.com — DAM
Twins, Marcy Dermansky (William Morrow): This quick-paced, daring novel centers on the adolescence of two identical twins in suburban New York as they struggle to cope with sexuality, neglectful parents and society’s pressures. What it lacks in believability (the twins are emancipated at age 16 to live alone together in a Manhattan apartment, and “bad girl” twin Sue breaks another girl’s nose with no repercussions) it makes up for with heartfelt prose and addictive charm. http://www.harpercollins.com — Ariane Resnick
Women on the Edge: West Coast Women Write, Samantha Dunn and Julianne Ortale (Toby Press): An anthology that departs from the abundance of “best of” compilations, Women on the Edge functions as a literary time capsule by showcasing fresh female voices originating from Los Angeles at a particular moment. The book offers unexpected and compelling short stories from women willing to delve beneath the surface and explore life on the periphery. http://www.tobypress.com — Janel M. Lynch
Homewrecker: An Adultery Reader, ed. Daphne Gottlieb (Soft Skull Press): San Francisco poet Daphne Gottlieb has assembled a collection of short stories and poems by an impressive list of contemporary writers who conjure not only the allure but also the ugly repercussions of cheating. If you are looking for lurid details of illicit passion (a la Unfaithful) look elsewhere, as Homewrecker is peopled with characters we’ve all met or been at some point in our lives. In lesbian poet Lenelle Moise’s Cuck(h)olding a Stranger, one subway ride profoundly changes the relationship between a black woman and her white boyfriend after a black man demands a general apology from him. Lori Selke takes on married lesbians and Neal Pollack changes the lives of people he’s never even met. Here, 26 writers and poets ask the hard questions about marriage, desire, sexuality, jealousy, possession, loyalty and more, drawing out the complex answers page by page. http://www.softskull.com — Amy Silverman
Seasons of a Heart, Constance O. Irvin (iUniverse): A former freelance TV news correspondent, Irvin’s debut novel follows a lesbian love affair set amidst the aftermath of a downed commuter plane in the frozen Wisconsin wilderness. A stranded flight attendant and the only other survivor struggle to endure while rescue efforts are slow to materialize. http://www.iuniverse.com — DAM
The Blue Scorpion, Julia Lieber (Alyson): Yet another Loy Lombard mystery, from the Knoxville, Tenn., based attorney-author, finds the
hard-drinking dyke PI coming out of retirement to track down a missing mail-order bride. In the meantime, there are underworld power-women, wealthy farm matrons and Lombard’s own demons to contend with. http://www.alyson.com — DAM
Love Will Tear Us Apart, Tara McCarthy (Downtown Press): This delightful satire of celebrity worship finds journalist Sloan Madden takes a gig writing about Flora and Fauna, sexy 17 year old Siamese twins who happen to be pop royalty. What she thought would be an easy puff piece turns into so much more as she discovers the secrets behind the entertainment façade. Think Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen with a shared appendage. http://www.simonandschuster.com — DAM
The Prisoner Pear: Stories From the Lake by Elissa Minor Rust (Swallow/Ohio University Press): The short stories in this collection all share the common thread of being based loosely upon real-life Lake Oswego, Oregon police blotter reports. As Lake Oswego is an upper class, predominantly white locale, the police reports are criminally unimportant at best and completely ridiculous at worst. The stories range from serious to light, from the mundane to the fantastic, but the writing style throughout remains captivating.
The common topic of teenage eating disorders is depicted in a haunting, heartfelt manner in “Iris and Megan Imagine Alternatives,” a story about two girls who decide to combine their weight so that they will comprise one healthy individual rather than two starving ones. Drawing on the two-halves-making-a-whole concept that is normally reserved for lovers, it’s full of lines that are simple yet shocking, such as “Iris did not have to say: I am pulling most of our one hundred and ninety-nine pounds. Iris did not have to say: Do we even weigh one hundred and ninety-nine pounds?”
On the other side of the spectrum are humorous anecdotes about a woman whose kidneys disappear while she goes on living as normal (“Vital Organs”) and a town whose full moon suddenly stops cycling, causing everything from plants to people to grow at an alarming rate (“Moon Over Water”). Most of the stories are open-ended, with little or no conclusions, and read more as vignettes about the intricacies of life and emotions than as cohesive narratives. Combining beautiful poeticism with a matter-of-fact tone, Rust’s technique is smooth and suave, lending the reader to care deeply about the fate of characters within the first paragraph or two of each tale. http://www.ohiou.edu/oupress/swallowbooks.htm — AR
Nonfiction
Brown on Brown: Chicano/a Representations of Gender, Sexuality and Ethnicity, Frederick Luis Aldama (University of Texas Press): Aldama, an English prof at Ohio State, argues that common conceptions permeating ethnic queer theory in the U.S. tend to confuse aesthetics with real world acts and politics. Aldama takes a different approach, going beyond the politics of difference to investigate the way race and queer sexuality intersect in Chicano/a literature and film while framing this thesis in the context of cannons that still seek to normalize heterosexual identity and experience. Heady stuff but well worth the read. http://www.utexaspress.com — DAM
Forever Ours: Real Stories of Immortality and Living from a Forensic Pathologist, Dr Janis Amatuzio (New World): Over the past 25 years of working as a forensic pathologist for several counties in Minnesota, Amatuzio has been confronted with the question “why?” In this oddly fascinating audio book, she shares these stories of raw grief alongside those of otherworldly transition between life and death. Unlike a lot of docs, Amatuzio believes there is more to death than just the cessation of breath. http://www.newworldlibrary.com — DAM
Ecovillages: A Practical Guide to Sustainable Communities, Jan Martin Bang (New Society): Ecovillages explores the new avenues in eco living and includes the history of the ecovillage movement, and a comprehensive manual for planning, establishing and maintaining your own sustainable community using a permaculture approach. Throughout the book are full color examples of ecovillages including a Kibbutz in Israel to the Camphill community of Norway to communities in Europe and Israel. A must for anyone who dreams of living in harmony and community with others. http://www.newsociety.com — DAM
Nobody Particular: One Woman’s Fight to Save the Bays, Molly Bang (Chelsea Green): Three-time Caldecott winner Bang has written more than 20 books for young people and Nobody, the graphic novel about commercial shrimper Diane Wilson, is another pure delight. Wilson, whose own story is documented in An Unreasonable Woman, launched a campaign against Formosa Plastics after finding out she lived in one of the most polluted counties in the country. This unrestrained graphic novel tells of how one woman (“nobody particular,” as she calls herself) forced a huge corporation to change its ways. http://www.chelseagreen.com — DAM
Screened Out: Playing Gay in Hollywood from Edison to Stonewall, Richard Barrios (Routledge): Rapacious dykes, self-loathing closet cases and ambiguous sophisticates: most of what America thought it knew about gay people it learned at the movies. Screened Out takes a fresh look at sexuality in the great age of filmmaking from the early 1900s to today. From cross-dressing to coded behavior, Barrios analysis is a welcome edition to the queer cinema studies genre. http://www.routledge-ny.com — DAM
What’s Your Poison? Addictive Advertising of the ‘40s – ‘60s, Kirven Blount (Collectors Press): According to the Surgeon General, only people with a good sense of humor should read this book. The cigarette and alcohol ads of the mid twentieth century offer fresh faced co-eds and modern suburbanites promising good health and endless pleasure from the decades’ vices. Our favorite so-wrong-it’s-good ad? A woman holding a gun to sell Smirnoff vodka and another holding six-packs of beer in front of her chest in a Budweiser ad that reads, “Pick a pair.” http://www.collectorspress.com — DAM
Xtra Tuf: The Strike Issue, Moe Bowstern (Microcosm): Yet another delightful ‘zine turned book from the quirky folks at Microcosm, Xtra is Bowstern’s ode to her own experiences as a commercial fisherwoman in the Pacific waters around Kodiak Island and to other people like her, brought together by their commitment to the sea, a code of ethics around farming the seas and their battle against an increasingly disrespected marketplace in which the value of their work has gone down steadily since the ‘80s. http://www.microcosmpublishing.com — DAM
Born Into Brothels: Photographs by the Children of Calcutta, Zana Briski (Umbrage Editions): It is impossible to not be moved by this collection of photographs taken by the children of prostitutes in Calcutta’s red light district. Photojournalist Briski taught the subjects of her HBO documentary of the same name how to use cameras and the resulting photos reflect their daily lives from uniquely inspired perspectives. http://www.umbragebooks.com — AS
The Phoenix Dance, Dia Calhoun (Farrar, Straus & Giroux): What better way to educate young adult women about emotional disorders than with a fantasy novel? Drawing from the Grimm’s fairy tale of the twelve dancing princesses, this book follows a bipolar girl named Phoenix on her up-and-down emotional adventures as the apprentice to a shoemaker. It deals with the issue of bipolar disorder in a delicate and unique manner by referring to it as “the illness of the two kingdoms,” in which the manic side is referred to as “the kingdom of brilliance” and the depressive side as “the kingdom of darkness.” http://www.fsgbooks.com — AR
Red Light: Superheroes, Saints, and Sluts, ed. Anna Camilleri (Arsenal Pulp Press): Camilleri pulls together a compilation of feminist authors who, in various forms of poetry, prose and art, make reflective statements on female icons and archetypes. With topics ranging from Wonder Woman to Pocahontas to the busty mud flap girl, these quick yet thoughtful reads should inspire any woman to take a second look at the images around her. http://www.arsenalpulp.com — LMF
The Real Bettie Page, Richard Foster (Citadel Press): Working from personal accounts by those who knew her, Foster uses his book to deconstruct the icon and image that is Bettie Page. With an often brutally honest representation of her life, Foster tears apart the sex kitten icon to reveal a deranged alley cat dealing with mental illness, poverty, and the backlash of fame. Sure, people will enjoy it, considering the obsession in our culture with Bettie Page, but you may feel uncomfortable doing so. It’s a good paparazzi style story, but be warned, it may corrupt your fantasies. http://www.kensingtonpress.com — LMF
Bony Yoga, Ryn Gargulinski (Red Wheel): Yes, yoga is all quiet and serious and meaningful but thankfully Gargulinski’s Bony Yoga offers a bit of brevity with her hilarious skeletal stick figures posed in the 50 most common poses, along with snarky comments about the asanas like the Sarvangasana (shoulderstand) which, she writes, is “ideal for sleeping in those cubicles that serve as apartment sin Tokyo or getting your point across at corporate staff meetings. http://www.weiserbooks.com — DAM
Vherses: A Celebration of Outstanding Women, J. Patrick Lewis (Creative Editions): From Emily Dickenson to Jane Goodall to Venus and Serena Williams, this poetic children’s book pays tribute to them all with verses and bios and beautiful full page illustrations and makes a perfect gift for any little girl. http://www.cbsd.com/PublisherDetail.aspx?ExtOrg=333 — DAM
Knitter’s Lib: Learn to Knit, Crochet, and Free Yourself From Pattern Deficiency, Lena Maikon (Ten Speed Press): Talk about knitting freedom: handmade knit designer Maikon offers up a bevy of simple and hip designs aimed at providing a DIY book with fun how-tos on kitting and crocheting everything from a hippie bikini to a fishnet skirt and skater pants. http://www.tenspeed.com — DAM
Blinded By the Lyrics, Brent Mann (Citadel): Mann goes behind the lines of rock and roll’s most baffling songs and offers up a fun party gift in this quick look at lyrical wonders like “pompatous of love” and “electric avenue.” A few women make the cut and are worthy of note, including Ricki Lee Jones, Martika, Sheryl Crow, Alanis Morissette, Sade and Roberta Flack. http://www.kensingtonbooks.com — DAM
Chick Living: Frugal and Fabulous, Kris Koederitz Melcher (Conari Press): Want to kick the stereotype of the broke lesbian? In Chick Living, Melcher breaks down how to do everything from invest to entertain. Although definitely written from a straight femme perspective, this book has tips that even the butchest boi can use. By fusing simple steps with even simpler why-didn’t-I-think-of-that ideas, Melcher’s book can become the woman’s guide to life on a budget. http://www.chickliving.com —LMF
The Midnight Eye Guide to New Japanese Film, Tom Mes and Jasper Sharp (Stonebridge): The Midnight Eye Guide offers up essay-like reviews of post feminist films like Audition as well as profiles of female filmmakers (like Naomi Kawase) that seem to underscore the Japanese film industry’s conspicuous lack of female filmmakers. http://www.stonebridge.com — DAMl
Standing Out, Standing Together: The Social and Political Impact of Gay-Straight Alliances, Melinda Miceli (Routledge): “Social change is almost always driven by the actions of individuals,” argues sociologist Melinda Miceli in her study of gay-straight alliances in the United States. She brings those individuals — high school students, teachers and their straight allies — to life in this groundbreaking account of the rise of a new social movement. In the last decade alone, what began as a few individual LGBT teens coming out in their high schools has blossomed into a national movement that has brought much more widespread acceptance of homosexuality into America’s schools. More importantly, the gay-straight alliances have trained a new generation of young activists who are now dedicated to continuing to create positive change in the broader gay rights movement. This book is a must-read for anybody who is interested in how young people today can make a difference. http://www.routledge.com — Malinda Lo
The Women Who Knew Too Much: Hitchcock and Feminist Theory, Tania Modleski (Routledge): First published in 1988, Women is a classic work in film theory and criticism as it analyzes seven films by thriller master Alfred Hitchcock on the basis of female spectatorship. This new paperback includes a new chapter on the last 15 years of Hitchcock. It’s worthy for the section on lesbian academic criticism with Modleski’s theories around pre-oedipal development and her neglect of lesbian subtext. http://www.routledge.com) — DAM
USA by Rail, John Pitt (Globe Pequot): If you’re one of those chicks aching to see the country but don’t relish the endless hours of driving, hoping a train is a great way to go from never-ending prairies to snow capped Rocky Mountains in style. This sixth edition offers 37 long distance routes with timetables, sightseeing and accommodations in 38 major cities as well as area maps and route plans. http://www.bradtguides.com — DAM
The Riddle of Gender: Science, Activism, and Transgender Rights, Deborah Rudacille (Pantheon Books): Transexuals are the new lesbians, hot, hot, hot in popular culture, popping up on every television show from Nip/Tuck to Without a Trace. At the same time a flood of trans memoirs and writings are washing into bookstores. But if you want one, all-encompassing introduction to the transgender community, look no farther than Deborah Rudacille’s 355-page tome, The Riddle of Gender: Science, Activism, and Transgender Rights.
In Riddle, science writer Rudacille weaves together years of historical, sociological, psychological and medical research to provide an engrossing initiation to the growing community of gender variant individuals. Transcripts of interviews with notable transsexuals follow each chapter, providing a trans perspective on the chapter’s subject and setting the stage for the next topic.
Riddleprovides an overview to the arguments regarding the formation of gender-identity (i.e. nature vs. nurture), then delves into the science of sexology and recent research into biological differences between the sexes. Rudacille also explores the tenuous relationship between the transgender and gay and lesbian communities. Despite the fact that drag queens started the Stonewall Riots that led to the gay rights movement, Rudacille argues that the larger lesbian and gay community has long tried to distance itself from transgendered individuals.
Although gender variance has become “psychopathologized” into the current psychiatric diagnosis of Gender Identity Disorder (GID), Rudacille convincingly argues that transgender identity is a biologically-based intersex condition in which the brain is “sexed” differently than the body. Rudacille points to environmental pollution as the likely source of hormonal imbalances in humans and the growing population of those whose bodies and/or psyches fall between the boundaries of male and female.
Rudacille concludes her book with a plea for tolerance of diversity. “In an era in which Americans are fighting and dying purportedly to free other people,” she writes, “perhaps we might take this one small step toward freeing ourselves by finally outlawing discrimination based on gender expression.” http://www.randomhouse.com/pantheon — Jacob Anderson-Minshall
Written in the Flesh: A History of Desire, Edward Shorter (University of Toronto Press): Is desire “natural,” or is it “nurture” that informs our longings? Medical historian Edward Shorter argues that it’s nature that drives us, and that while sexual desire may be constrained or shaped by culture, it is firmly based in biology. In other words, being straight or gay is inborn, not determined by one’s upbringing. Shorter examines documents throughout Western history, including the incredible diary of Englishwoman (and lesbian) Anne Lister, to show how desire is expressed and experienced as a physical function. Written in an accessible and engaging style, Written in the Flesh is a fascinating account of sexual desire. http://www.utpress.utoronto.ca — Malinda Lo
Dirty South Cookbook & Hot DAMn and Hell Yeah: Recipes for Hungry Banditos, Ryan Splint (Microcosm): Two cookzines rolled in to one, Dirty is chock full of recipes aimed at folks who no longer want to cook critters to have a good meal. The vegan and vegetarian recipes take on Southern classics like dirty rice and shepherd’s pie as well as no-meat versions of healthy Tex-Mex fare like fajitas, chili and sloppy joes. Perfect for that vegan gal who doesn’t have an imagination of her own. http://www.microcosmpublishing.com — DAM
Bad Girls: Film Fatales, Sirens and Molls, Tony Turtu (Collectors Press): Finally a book that celebrates those B movie bad girls of the big screen. Blinded by desire, crazed with jealously, ripe with sin, this book celebrates the actresses who made careers out of being bad. Includes rarely seen movie posters, lobby cards and photographs organized by theme and genre. http://www.collectorspress.com — Diane Anderson-Minshall
Bad Advice, Martha Vialli with Karen Krizanovich (Roadside Amusement): For the butch that has every how-to book out there, here comes a how-to on being bad. With a little switching of the pronouns — the book is written by a straight gal — every dyke can learn how to start an anthrax scare, get wedding gifts for free, steal a taxi or just be plain evil, all wrapped up in a handy pocket sized book. http://www.arsenalpulp.com — LMF
Chinese Home Remedies: Harnessing Ancient Wisdom for Self-Healing, Lihua Wang (New Page): This intriguing blend of traditional Chinese medicine and ancient Chinese folk remedies offers a treasure trove of info for layperson who don’t go in for Western medicine. Wang, who was a doctor in China and an acupuncturist and herbalist in the U.S., offers up techniques fro Chinese massage, Eastern food therapy and herbal formulas with some surprising results (did you know eating peanuts can lower your blood pressure?). http://www.newpagebooks.com — DAM
Memoir
Minus One: A Twelve-Step Journey, Bridget Bufford (Alice Street): The incisive story of a lesbian confronting her own alcoholism, documenting her recover and eponymous 12 steps along with her exciting sexual encounters and her search for love. http://www.haworthpress.com — DAM
Reading, Writing, and Leaving Home: Life on the Page, Lynn Freed (Harcourt): “Writers are natural murderers,” admits author Lynn Freed (page 30) in “Sex With the Servants,” an essay exploring the necessity of being ruthless when writing fiction. The 11 essays on writing and life collected in this volume are similarly direct — like an elegant, sharp instrument that magnifies the workings of Freed’s mind. The critically acclaimed author (House of Women) takes us into her childhood in Durban, South Africa, and shows us the paths she has taken in her life as a writer. Vibrant, illuminating and glittering with chill precision, this book is a revelation for anyone with a love for the written word. http://www.harcourtbooks.com — Malinda Lo
The Secret of M. Dulong, Colette Inez (University of Wisconsin): Poet Inez came to the US as an apparent Belgian orphan, escorted by two strangers. She survived a harrowing adolescence in a abusive adoptive family by developing her passion for literature. But when she faces deportation in the 1950s, Inez sets off to prove her claim to citizenship and that search leads to this eloquent and haunting memoir. http://www.wisc.edu/wisconsinpress — DAM
My Depression, Elizabeth Swados (Hyperion): Swados’ verbal and pictorial depiction of her depression draws readers into a world both marred by desperation and isolation and mercifully tempered by humor and hope. Swados is a survivor, emerging from the bleakest of situations possessing laughter and a tenacious desire for healing and creation. She shares the wisdom of her experience in this touching and insightful book, likely to have meaning for everyone from those suffering the occasional bad mood to those plunging to depths matched by the author. http://www.hyperionbooks.com — Janel M. Lynch
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