Queer Books Please: August 2013

Saturday, August 31, 2013

Episode 32 - Two White Dresses

A review of SISTERLAND by Curtis Sittenfeld. A visit to the Montague Bookmill. Anticipated fall books. A quick wedding story.

Below the cut you can stream the episode from the embedded player, or download the MP3 directly.

Thanks for listening!

Episode 31 - I Can't Think Straight (book v. movie)

My finalized vacation reading list, and a discussion of the novel and film versions of I Can't Think Straight by Shamim Sarif.

direct download the mp3

I Can't Think Straight

by Shamim Sarif

Saturday, August 17, 2013

Episode 30 - Four Essential Questions for the Literary Lesbian

My answers to the four important questions every reading lesbian should think about, plus lots of musings on sexual desire, complicated lesbian relationships, and what to read when you go on vacation. Listen using the streaming link below, or download the MP3, or download (and subscribe!) on itunes.

download mp3 here

The Night Watch

by Sarah Waters

What Do Women Want?: Adventures in the Science of Female Desire

by Daniel Bergner

Monday, August 12, 2013

Four essential questions for the lesbian reader

These make great conversation starters with any literary lesbians you want to chat up! And if you answer here, via email or on tumblr, they can win you a book off my bookshelf! That’s right. Answer here in the comment section, send me an email or share these questions on tumblr and I’ll enter you in this week’s drawing to win a book off my bookshelf. I have lots of great titles of interest to queer readers. Literary fiction, romances, science fiction…

1. Emma Donoghue or Sarah Waters?

Two fantastic authors from the UK who have written fantastic literature that happens to be full of lesbians. Both have great, accessible, fun to read but literary writing styles that give them a broad appeal. Both have had success/recognition with mainstream readers as well as queer readers. I love them both. BUT IF YOU HAD TO CHOOSE.... Would you go with TIPPING THE VELVET or STIR FRY? FINGERSMITH or LANDING? THE NIGHT WATCH or KISSING THE WITCH?

2. Speaking of acclaimed literary authors from the UK How do you feel about Jeanette Winterson?

Mostly I remember being left by a girlfriend for a girl who LOVED Winterson. So my feelings are complicated! But she is such an acclaimed author, I feel lesbian readers are obligated to have an opinion.

3. Watch Out For Dykes or Pass the Bechdel Test?

Sometimes the hardest question to answer when I'm picking out my next read. Do I want a book full of identified lesbians? Or is it enough to have a book that passes the Bechdel test, where female characters talk to each other about something other than men? If the Bechdel test is your rule of choice, you're going to have a wider variety of titles available to you. But you may be stuck with subtext when it comes to sapphic content. The subtext of this question is: do you prefer subtext or text?

4. Which literary lesbian would you most like to date?

This is an interesting question, because the most attractive lesbian in a piece of lesbian fiction is often not the main character, but the main character's object of desire. For an extra degree of difficulty, name the most attractive NARRATOR in a lesbian book.

Want to know MY answers to these questions? Listen to this week's Queer Books Please podcast, out Saturday morning!

Friday, August 9, 2013

Episode 29 - The longest quick reading update there ever was

This "hopefully quick" episode clocks in at over 30 minutes. Updates on what I've been reading, and a couple interesting pieces in the New York Times are highlighted. Plus a chance ( or two! or three!) to win a book off my bookshelf. Email me at queerbooksplease@gmail.com with feedback, positive, negative, or neutral, about how the show has been doing in general to enter a drawing to win a book. Stream the show below, or download the MP3 directly, or download on iTunes.

direct download.

New York Times review of MY EDUCATION by Susan Choi. Review by Emily Cooke.
Letter in response to the review.

THE NIGHT WATCH by Sarah Waters
CODE NAME VERITY by Elizabeth Wein
WHAT DO WOMEN WANT by Daniel Bergner

Music used this episode

Second Hand (Frame) / CC BY-NC-SA 3.0

Saturday, August 3, 2013

Episode 28 - ANNIE ON MY MIND (or how I was a teenage book thief but now I try to forgive myself)

Mary gets all sorts of feelings about ANNIE ON MY MIND, and shares a little bit about her mind when she was a teenage. Plus a couple fun kickstarter projects listeners might be interested in.