50 Years in the Jungle

Although we won't get to Rita Mae Brown's Rubyfruit Jungle until next spring, the New York Times is marking the 50th anniversary of its fall 1973 publication with a wonderful roundup of reactions to the novel from a host of musicians and writers. I especially like this photo of the author, both because it captures her personality so well and because its caption reminds us of her strong connection to Washington, D.C., during the 1970s. Brown was a founding member of The Furies Collective, a separatist lesbian feminist community in D.C. that purchased and lived in two houses. The experiment only lasted a year (1971-1972), but its example remained influential long afterward. Brown went on to earn a doctorate in political science from the Institute for Public Studies in D.C.

Rita Mae Brown at the 1973 publication party for “Rubyfruit Jungle” at Lammas Women’s Books & More in Washington, D.C.Credit...

JEB (Joan E. Biren) 

Are YOU a Fellow Traveler?

We're now halfway through "Fellow Travelers," the eight-part Showtime/Paramount + miniseries. Based on Thomas Mallon's 2007 novel Fellow Travelers, it has an openly gay cast, headed by Matt Bomer as Hawkins Fuller and Jonathan Bailey as Timothy Laughlin. (We discussed the book back in 2008, and several of you have suggested we revisit it on our next list.) While the critics' reviews have been mixed, they're mostly positive. However, a good friend of mine maintains Bailey is miscast, being too old and tall to fit the novel's description of the character.  He's right on the merits, but I find Bailey's strong performance overcomes such inconsistencies, and I strongly recommend the series. 

Here are some links to check out if you're still on the fence about watching "Fellow Travelers":

Washington Post Live interview of Ron Nyswander, creator/executive producer of the series

New York Times profile of Nyswander

New Yorker review

Vanity Fair review

 

Best Books of 2023 (W. Post)

When I went through the Post's "50 Best Nonfiction" and "50 Best Fiction" year-end lists, I found a total of 12 LGBTQ-related titles! Four are nonfiction: The Critic's Daughter, by Priscilla Gilman; Lou Reed: The King of New York, by Will Hermes; Pageboy, by Elliot Page; and Upside-Down World: Meetings with the Great Dutch Painters, by Benjamin Moser. (Pageboy also made the New York Times list.)

And in the fiction category: After Sappho, by Selby Wynn Schwartz; Blackouts, by Justin Torres (both of which also made the Times list); Family Meal, by Bryan Washington; The House of Doors, by Tan Twan Eng (scroll down when you open the link);  I Will Greet the Sun Again, by Khashayar J. Khabushani; In Memoriam, by Alice Winn (see Oct. 17 item below); Open Throat, by Henry Hoke; and Up with the Sun, by Thomas Mallon.

100 Notable Books of 2023 (NY Times)

When I went through the Times' "100 Notable Books of 2023" compilation, I found just four LGBTQ-related titles: After Sappho, by Selby Wynn Schwartz; Blackouts, by Justin Torres;  We Could Be So Good, by Cat Sebastian; and Pageboy, by Elliot Page. (The first two were also on the Washington Post's list.) By the way, I've always wondered what happens to books published in November and December, which is too late to be included in such roundups. Do they fall between the critical and promotional cracks? 

A 28-year slog

Patrick Flynn kindly brought this recent Guardian article to my attention: "It never ends: the book club that spent 28 years reading Finnegans Wake." Its founder, Gerry Fialka, describes the club, based in Venice, California, this way: "more a performance art piece than a book club ... a living organism, a hootenanny ... a choir." Speaking as a choir director myself, I know exactly what he means with that final metaphor--and I think it applies to at least some of our own discussions, too.  😀

Shop queer at, well, ShopQueer

Our friend Ken Jost was kind enough to share an email from the Harvard Gender and Sexuality Caucus which, in addition to describing the group's upcoming activities, alerted me to a bookseller I wasn't familiar with: ShopQueer. It's an independent bookshop that splits its profits with queer authors, doubling their income from the sale of a book. As if that weren't enough incentive, you get a 20% discount on your first order after signing up for the newsletter. I applied mine to Justin Torres' Blackouts, which sounds like a good candidate for our 2025 reading list. Thanks, Ken!