Thinking about future reading!

bloghead
Originally uploaded by kim.mama

In case you hadn't noticed, I decided we needed a logo. Ha! Nothing fancy, just something a little jazzier to blend in with this standard blogger template.

But back to the topic at hand. Future reading. Been thinking on that. Some people want to read Radclyffe Hall's classic The Well of Loneliness. I like that idea.

Some others (me!) want to read Audre Lorde's classic Zami.

A newer title caught my eye - All the Pretty Girls by Chandra Mayor, a Winnipeg author. All the Pretty Girls is a collection of short stories, so a bit tougher for discussion, but still. Winnipeg author! Nominated for the Lambda in the Lesbian Fiction category!

Another nominee that caught my eye was Stephanie Grant. Her latest novel, Map of Ireland, sounds delightful! Seriously. "In Map of Ireland, Stephanie Grant has written a novel of hard times that is a jagged jewel of perfection... it is as if Charles Dickens had written a tomboy." —Honor Moore, author of The Bishop's Daughter

One more that has piqued my interest: Down to the Bone by Mayra Lazara Dole. A young adult novel about a Latina lesbian teen!

If you find a title you're dying to read, email me or comment here!

Southland is a controversial book!

Discussion of Southland was heated! There were lovers and haters of the book. From the topic of the Japanese internment during WWII to the race riots of L.A. in the 60s, there was lots of history to slog through - in a good way. I'm not sure I'm qualified to summarize the whole discussion because it really ran the gamut from the truly analytical - why so many voices and points of view; how one-dimensional some characters seemed; the author's choice to flip frequently from one time period to another - to the more subjective - why didn't Jackie break up with her girlfriend before kissing another woman?!; why did everyone love the grandfather so much?

It was a great discussion. Thanks everyone.

March's title is Dionne Brand's 2006 novel What We All Long For. Random House has some discussion questions on their site. Be sure to check those out.

Take note we've selected titles for April and May as well. For April we chose something that appears to be a bit on the lighter side - we need that after The Child and Southland - Ali Leibegott's Lambda winner The IHOP Papers. And for May we're going with a Lindy pick, another graphic novel, Skim, by Mariko Tamaki. Lindy's never steered us wrong.

1000 novels everyone must read.

1000 novels everyone should read.
Originally uploaded by kim.mama

The Guardian has published a list of "1000 novels everyone must read." I thought I'd check how many titles by lesbian/bi authors were included in the list. Here's what I found:

• Nightwood by Djuna Barnes
• Fun Home by Alison Bechdel
• Rubyfruit Jungle by Rita Mae Brown
• The Well of Loneliness by Radclyffe Hall
• Strangers on a Train by Patricia Highsmith
• The Talented Mr Ripley by Patricia Highsmith
• Zami by Audre Lorde
• Delta of Venus by Anais Nin
• The Night Watch by Sarah Waters
• Affinity by Sarah Waters
• Fingersmith by Sarah Waters
• Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit by Jeanette Winterson
• The Passion by Jeanette Winterson
• To the Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf
• Mrs Dalloway by Virginia Woolf
• Orlando by Virginia Woolf

So what do you think? I'm a fan of Sarah Waters, but three? three titles? of hers? Really? There are only three of Hemingway's novels included! Just pondering. Is there any title you really think they missed out on? Do you think any of those included don't deserve it?