And speaking of gay dicks...

(Yes, I went there!)

The  Jan. 19 edition of the Washington Post "Thrillers" roundup, reviewed by Richard Lipez, announces that Syndicate Press is reprinting all of Joseph Hansen's pioneering Dave Brandstetter novels over the coming 12 months. Fadeout, the first in the series featuring the comfortably gay World War II vet and L.A. insurance investigator, was published in 1970. As Michael Nava (two of whose mystery novels we have discussed) points out in his insightful new introduction, that's when gay sex was a criminal act in 49 of 50 states. Through grit and sheer talent, Hansen writes, "It is his art, ultimately, and not simply his subject matter, that makes Joseph Hansen one of the great masters of California noir." Lipez concludes, "Crime fiction fans who don't know Hansen's work are in for a treat." 

Julian Barnes' gay detective

At last week's meeting, Ernie Raskauskas mentioned that under the pen name Dan Kavanagh, Julian Barnes wrote a series of four novels featuring Nick Duffy, a bisexual ex-cop turned security consultant. Octavio Roca has also read The Duffy Omnibus and was kind enough to share a photo of the cover. The books are out of print, alas, but are available from used-book dealers.

Cree Me a River

During our recent Zoom discussion of Patrick Gale's A Place Called Winter, Mike Mazza helpfully utilized the chat function to share three links related to one of the most fascinating characters in the novel (to me, anyway): Ursula, a Two-Spirit Canadian. If you're interested in learning more about her First Nation culture, here is a great visual of the Cree language and its syllabary; a proof from freshly made Cree typeface; and John Horden's translation of William Pinnock's Catechism of Bible and Gospel History, printed in Moose Cree syllabics.

Band of Brothers

I suspect I'm not the only person who is constantly behind on his New Yorker issues, but once I finally got around to reading this article from last April, I knew I had to share it--if only for the illustration. In writing about "Ancient Greece's Army of Lovers," Daniel Mendelsohn references James Romm's The Sacred Band: Three Hundred Theban Lovers Fight to Save Greek Civilization. The book's illustrator, Markley Boyer, collated 19th-century drawings of the mass grave in which the skeletons of 254 of the 300 soldiers were found. Some of the couples were buried with arms linked, and some were holding hands. (You can see that better by clicking on the article link.)

A Bigger Life?

Almost exactly five years ago, we discussed Hanya Yanagihara's magnum opus, A Little Life. I still recall that meeting as being especially lively, so I can only imagine the kind of conversational sparks her latest novel, To Paradise, might ignite if we end up putting it on our next reading list, as several of you have suggested. (It's already out in paperback, by the way, but the hardcover edition is six dollars cheaper on Amazon's site.) To whet your appetite (or confirm your distaste for Yanagihara's work), here are reviews from the Atlantic, Washington Post, New York Times and New Republic, as well as a profile of the novelist in the latest New Yorker.

OutWrite Festival 2022

Although the DC Center's annual Outwrite Festival isn't happening until Aug. 5-7, organizers are now seeking reading, panel and workshop submissions exploring and celebrating all aspects of the LGBTQ+ identity and literary space. The deadline to submit proposals is March 15. 

What Is the Grass?

My thanks to Richard Schaefers for suggesting another book about Walt Whitman's poetry that might make a fine companion to Live Oak, with Moss, which we discussed this past May. Mark Doty's What Is the Grass (W.W. Norton, 2020) also comes with illustrations (albeit not as many as Live Oak offers). Reviewing the book in the Washington Post, Scott Bradfield said: "What Is the Grass doesn't possess a single inelegant sentence or poorly expressed thought. ... An excellent opportunity to re-examine the work of one of America's first major poets through the prose of one of its best living ones."