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Bitter Eden
Tatamkhulu Afrika and Toby Fountaine
Book
In this frank and beautifully written novel, Tatamkhulu Afrika revisits his experiences as an allied...
Women, Crime, and Justice: Balancing the Scales
Elaine Gunnison, Frances P. Bernat and Lynne Goodstein
Book
Women, Crime, and Justice: Balancing the Scales presents a comprehensive analysis of the role of...
Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe
9.0
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It has taken me a long time to get through this novel and not because I didn't enjoy it, but because...
Romance gay and lesbian friendship
The World The Way It Should Be
9.0
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Book
After years of struggling with her sexuality, Chris finally comes out as gay when she starts college...
Lesbian Coming Out
Heartstopper Volume One
9.2
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Book
Charlie and Nick are at the same school, but they've never met ... until one day when they're made...
Ivana A. | Diary of Difference (1171 KP) rated Music From Another World in Books
Aug 3, 2020
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Music From Another World is a powerful and emotional read, about fighting for freedom and acceptance and the amazing feeling when you finally find a crowd where you can really fit in!
<b><i>Synopsis:</i></b>
It’s summer 1977 and closeted lesbian Tammy Larson can’t be herself anywhere. Not at her strict Christian high school. Not at her conservative Orange County church. And certainly not at home, where her ultra religious aunt relentlessly organizes anti gay political campaigns. Tammy’s only outlet is writing secret letters in her diary to gay civil rights activist Harvey Milk… until she has a real-life pen pal who changes everything.
Sharon Hawkins will bond with Tammy over punk music and carefully shared secrets, and soon their letters become the one place she can be honest. The rest of her life in San Francisco is full of lies. The kind she tells for others - like helping her gay brother hide the truth from their mom. But as anti gay fervor in America reaches a frightening new pitch, Sharon and Tammy must rely on their long-distance friendship to discover their deeply personal truths. What they’ll stand for…and who they’ll rise against.
<b><i>My Thoughts: </i></b>
From the very first moment I read the synopsis, I knew I needed to read this book. It seemed filled with 1970's spirit, the movement to be brave and honest. The discussions in this book are through the form of letters or diary entries, which I really enjoyed. This writing style helped me get through the book extremely quickly.
We get to meet the two girls, Tammy and Sharon, both very different, but both struggling with the same issues of being contained in a world where they cannot be themselves. And even though this particular book is about the LGBTQ+ community, I believe this issue also applies to anything else in life, where people feel like they cannot be who they really are. Sometimes it is religion, other times it is political opinions, it could even be different hobbies where the person feels needs to contain in themselves because of the fear they might be frowned upon or laughed at.
<b><i>It is amazing to see how the world has progressed over the years, where people start feeling like they can finally express who they really are. It is not yet ideal, but I have a good feeling we are getting there. There is also the very powerful force of the internet, the advantage people didn't have before, to find people across the globe that share the same beliefs and interests. </i></b>
Music From Another World really moved me, and it brought up various emotions. It talks about the struggles and the reprimands, but it also talks about real happiness and laughter. The amazing feeling when you finally find a crowd that accepts you and where you truly belong. I believe this is the first book with a plot that made me feel so happy, so sad and so angry at the same time.
Thank you to NetGalley and the HQ Team, for sending me an ARC copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!
<a href="https://diaryofdifference.com/">Blog</a>; | <a href="https://www.facebook.com/diaryofdifference/">Facebook</a>; | <a href="https://twitter.com/DiaryDifference">Twitter</a>; | <a href="https://www.instagram.com/diaryofdifference/">Instagram</a>; | <a href="https://www.pinterest.co.uk/diaryofdifference/pins/">Pinterest</a>;
<img src="https://diaryofdifference.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Book-Review-Banner-53.png"/>;
Music From Another World is a powerful and emotional read, about fighting for freedom and acceptance and the amazing feeling when you finally find a crowd where you can really fit in!
<b><i>Synopsis:</i></b>
It’s summer 1977 and closeted lesbian Tammy Larson can’t be herself anywhere. Not at her strict Christian high school. Not at her conservative Orange County church. And certainly not at home, where her ultra religious aunt relentlessly organizes anti gay political campaigns. Tammy’s only outlet is writing secret letters in her diary to gay civil rights activist Harvey Milk… until she has a real-life pen pal who changes everything.
Sharon Hawkins will bond with Tammy over punk music and carefully shared secrets, and soon their letters become the one place she can be honest. The rest of her life in San Francisco is full of lies. The kind she tells for others - like helping her gay brother hide the truth from their mom. But as anti gay fervor in America reaches a frightening new pitch, Sharon and Tammy must rely on their long-distance friendship to discover their deeply personal truths. What they’ll stand for…and who they’ll rise against.
<b><i>My Thoughts: </i></b>
From the very first moment I read the synopsis, I knew I needed to read this book. It seemed filled with 1970's spirit, the movement to be brave and honest. The discussions in this book are through the form of letters or diary entries, which I really enjoyed. This writing style helped me get through the book extremely quickly.
We get to meet the two girls, Tammy and Sharon, both very different, but both struggling with the same issues of being contained in a world where they cannot be themselves. And even though this particular book is about the LGBTQ+ community, I believe this issue also applies to anything else in life, where people feel like they cannot be who they really are. Sometimes it is religion, other times it is political opinions, it could even be different hobbies where the person feels needs to contain in themselves because of the fear they might be frowned upon or laughed at.
<b><i>It is amazing to see how the world has progressed over the years, where people start feeling like they can finally express who they really are. It is not yet ideal, but I have a good feeling we are getting there. There is also the very powerful force of the internet, the advantage people didn't have before, to find people across the globe that share the same beliefs and interests. </i></b>
Music From Another World really moved me, and it brought up various emotions. It talks about the struggles and the reprimands, but it also talks about real happiness and laughter. The amazing feeling when you finally find a crowd that accepts you and where you truly belong. I believe this is the first book with a plot that made me feel so happy, so sad and so angry at the same time.
Thank you to NetGalley and the HQ Team, for sending me an ARC copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!
Suswatibasu (1703 KP) rated Bad Feminist in Books
Nov 23, 2017
A mixed bag of essays
Roxane Gay is a gifted writer no doubt, but like a lot of her more prominent work, there are huge amounts of autobiographical information that didn't seem completely relevant.
Her essays on the intersection of feminism with misogynistic pop culture was incredibly on point, exploring E.L. James' infamous BDSM novel Fifty Shades of Grey, as well as other popular novels such as Twilight. She briefly mentions rape culture and how all of the above feeds into this notion.
Similarly her discussion on how race is portrayed in major Hollywood motion pictures is accurately disturbing - showing how African Americans are used in plots as a way to prop up white protagonists (The Help, Django Unchained).
Some of her other chapters seemed disconnected as if they were put in the book because there was no other place for it. This appears in the chapter on Scrabble. (Playing Scrabble doesn't make you a bad feminist).
There were a lot of haphazard thoughts that didn't quite thread together with the rest of the book ie. abortion rights, and male politicians' views on body autonomy. Gay was pretty adamant on her views on this, which appeared to showcase her opinion that she truly is a feminist.
The underlying message was that you may have flaws by enjoying aspects of pop culture, but as long as you are aware of how important it is that women receive equal rights, you can be any kind of feminist. But the book does feel as if she's trying to prove it to herself and to the world which seems rather unnecessary. We believe you Roxane.
Her essays on the intersection of feminism with misogynistic pop culture was incredibly on point, exploring E.L. James' infamous BDSM novel Fifty Shades of Grey, as well as other popular novels such as Twilight. She briefly mentions rape culture and how all of the above feeds into this notion.
Similarly her discussion on how race is portrayed in major Hollywood motion pictures is accurately disturbing - showing how African Americans are used in plots as a way to prop up white protagonists (The Help, Django Unchained).
Some of her other chapters seemed disconnected as if they were put in the book because there was no other place for it. This appears in the chapter on Scrabble. (Playing Scrabble doesn't make you a bad feminist).
There were a lot of haphazard thoughts that didn't quite thread together with the rest of the book ie. abortion rights, and male politicians' views on body autonomy. Gay was pretty adamant on her views on this, which appeared to showcase her opinion that she truly is a feminist.
The underlying message was that you may have flaws by enjoying aspects of pop culture, but as long as you are aware of how important it is that women receive equal rights, you can be any kind of feminist. But the book does feel as if she's trying to prove it to herself and to the world which seems rather unnecessary. We believe you Roxane.
Goddess in the Stacks (553 KP) rated Less in Books
Jul 28, 2018
Less is a good name for this book, because that's how I found it. Less than the love story it is purported to be. Less interesting than people say it is. Less funny than reviews would have me believe. Less than I was expecting. It's a Pulitzer Prize winner, apparently? Maybe I just don't "get" contemporary fiction. Because unless it's YA, I very, VERY rarely like it. I didn't like Arthur Less. None of his misadventures were that funny.
The book was a little meta; Arthur is told that the book he's writing isn't that interesting because his protagonist, a middle aged gay white man, isn't interesting and no one cares about him. Which is exactly how I feel about Arthur Less. He's a middle aged gay white man with the means to travel the world, and a boyfriend who would have married him if he'd only, I don't know, asked. But he just floats through his life a little melancholy and woe is me. And not in the like actually depressed kind of way. Just - meh.
Arthur is BORING. Arthur is privileged, and boring, and annoying as all hell. This book just makes me want to avoid Pulitzer Prize winners. Who awards these prizes, and WHY? Also why does everybody rave about books like this?
Blargh. Don't bother with this book. People who say it made them laugh out loud don't know what they're talking about, or perhaps haven't read actually funny books. They should read something by Ellen, or Trevor Noah, or Tiffany Haddish. THEY'RE ACTUALLY FUNNY.
You can find all my reviews at http://goddessinthestacks.wordpress.com
The book was a little meta; Arthur is told that the book he's writing isn't that interesting because his protagonist, a middle aged gay white man, isn't interesting and no one cares about him. Which is exactly how I feel about Arthur Less. He's a middle aged gay white man with the means to travel the world, and a boyfriend who would have married him if he'd only, I don't know, asked. But he just floats through his life a little melancholy and woe is me. And not in the like actually depressed kind of way. Just - meh.
Arthur is BORING. Arthur is privileged, and boring, and annoying as all hell. This book just makes me want to avoid Pulitzer Prize winners. Who awards these prizes, and WHY? Also why does everybody rave about books like this?
Blargh. Don't bother with this book. People who say it made them laugh out loud don't know what they're talking about, or perhaps haven't read actually funny books. They should read something by Ellen, or Trevor Noah, or Tiffany Haddish. THEY'RE ACTUALLY FUNNY.
You can find all my reviews at http://goddessinthestacks.wordpress.com
Great voice actors (2 more)
Brilliant dungeon master
Hysterically innovative problem solving
Dungeons, Dragons, Drama, Hysteria, and Mischievous Gay Energy
New and experienced Dungeons and Dragons players will find plenty here to keep them in fits of laughter. For anyone who thinks that D&D is just for nerds - prepare to be schooled.
Brilliant characters, with some of the oddest accents you've ever heard;an awesome (and handsome) dungeon master, who occasionally sounds strangely like Richard Ayoade; hopefully a great many story arcs to come; and drama and hilarity running as amok as the cast will have you binging the first episodes and then wondering what in Baphomet's name you can do for the week until the next installment of this wonder of podcastery drops into your list!
Brilliant characters, with some of the oddest accents you've ever heard;an awesome (and handsome) dungeon master, who occasionally sounds strangely like Richard Ayoade; hopefully a great many story arcs to come; and drama and hilarity running as amok as the cast will have you binging the first episodes and then wondering what in Baphomet's name you can do for the week until the next installment of this wonder of podcastery drops into your list!
Awix (3310 KP) rated Theatre of Blood (1973) in Movies
Feb 14, 2018 (Updated Feb 14, 2018)
The Play's the Thing
Indisputably the best of the Vincent Price 'madman on a vengeful killing spree' movies from the early 70s, allowing Price to give full reign to his remarkable talents. Ham actor Edward Lionheart gets his own back on pretentious critics by performing various gory Shakespearean scenes for real; this gives him the opportunity to disguise himself as such diverse characters as a chef, a policeman, Butch the gay hairdresser, and many more; Price is having a whale of a time throughout, as you'd expect.
Notable also for an astonishingly good cast of British character actors, most of whom are only in a couple of scenes before they get murdered. Consistently witty and inventive, even a little moving in parts as well. Point knocked off for not letting Price get away with it!
Notable also for an astonishingly good cast of British character actors, most of whom are only in a couple of scenes before they get murdered. Consistently witty and inventive, even a little moving in parts as well. Point knocked off for not letting Price get away with it!