Alexander Chee’s feverishly awaited, extravagantly entertaining second novel—his first since 2002’s acclaimed ‘Edinburgh’—begins with a proposal. Lilliet Berne, the dazzling, 19th-century opera star … [Read more...] about Alexander Chee’s ‘The Queen of the Night’ — Book Review
A Year In Queer Reading: Garth Greenwell’s Favorite LGBT Books of 2015
I’m always behind in my reading, but more than most, 2015 was a year when my pile of “must read” books grew far faster than I could possibly hope to get through it. (The unread book that looms largest … [Read more...] about A Year In Queer Reading: Garth Greenwell’s Favorite LGBT Books of 2015
Film Pays Homage To Queer Pioneer Claude Cahun
This Thursday evening, New York’s Merkin Hall will see the premiere of a short film that pays homage to the lesbian French artist, writer, and heroic anti-Nazi activist Claude Cahun. Two young queer … [Read more...] about Film Pays Homage To Queer Pioneer Claude Cahun
Lori Ostlund’s ‘After the Parade’: Book Review
At the beginning of Lori Ostlund’s lyrical, intricately constructed first novel, Aaron Englund knows he has to escape his life. Forty-one, for more than twenty years he has been in a relationship with … [Read more...] about Lori Ostlund’s ‘After the Parade’: Book Review
Christopher Bollen’s ‘Orient’: Book Review
Christopher Bollen begins his gorgeous new novel with an epigraph from the philosopher Paul Virilio: “The invention of the ship was also the invention of the shipwreck.” It’s a fitting motto for this … [Read more...] about Christopher Bollen’s ‘Orient’: Book Review
Michael Klein, ‘When I Was A Twin’: Book Review
Michael Klein’s fourth collection of poems begins with a news report for the dead. “There’s a lot more death since you died,” he writes. “People live for it, now.” The poem is a survey of the … [Read more...] about Michael Klein, ‘When I Was A Twin’: Book Review
Ryan Berg, ‘No House To Call My Home: Love, Family, And Other Transgressions’: Book Review
Ryan Berg begins this account of LGBTQ teens in New York City’s troubled foster care system with statistics that are at once shocking and painfully familiar. “Children placed in foster care are more … [Read more...] about Ryan Berg, ‘No House To Call My Home: Love, Family, And Other Transgressions’: Book Review
Vivian Gornick’s ‘The Odd Woman and the City: A Memoir’: Book Review
There’s an astonishing moment about halfway through Vivian Gornick’s moving, trenchant new book about life in New York. Rushing onto the subway at 14th Street, late for an appointment, she notices a … [Read more...] about Vivian Gornick’s ‘The Odd Woman and the City: A Memoir’: Book Review
David Crabb’s ‘Bad Kid: A Memoir’: Book Review
BY GARTH GREENWELL I stayed up all night reading this hilarious memoir of growing up gay in the early 1990s, which is as addictive as the mind-altering substances that fill its pages. In his … [Read more...] about David Crabb’s ‘Bad Kid: A Memoir’: Book Review
Mark Merlis’ ‘JD’: Book Review
BY GARTH GREENWELL At the beginning of Mark Merlis’ engrossing, ambitious new novel, we meet Martha, a 75-year-old illustrator. For decades she has lived alone in her New York City apartment, bearing … [Read more...] about Mark Merlis’ ‘JD’: Book Review
