GAY PEOPLE'S CHRONICLE NOVEMBER 26, 1993

BOOKS

A literary holiday gift-giving guide

by Timothy Robson

A very few years ago it was possible to keep track of every book published about a gay topic or by a gay or lesbian author simply because there weren't very many. That is no longer the case, as more and more gay authors are published by prominent publishers. It is still arguable that gay men have a much easier time than women getting their books published, particularly by mainstream

trade houses. Nonetheless,

the rise of

desktop pub-

lishing and smaller publishing concerns has led to an explosion of worthwhile gay and lesbian books. This is all to our benefit.

In the holiday spirit, following

are some recom-

mendations of

books of general interest. One Million Strong: The 1993 March on Washington for Lesbian, Gay, and Bi Equal Rights, by Cece Cox, Lisa Means, and Lisa Pope ($17.95, paper, 160 pp.) would make an excellent souvenir for those who attended the March. It is filled with black and white pictures of all of the major events that won't replace your own photo album, but do give an overall perspective of that historic weekend.

Left to right: Photographer Lisa Means, writer Lisa Pope, and photographer Cece Cox, authors of One Million Strong: The 1993 March on Washington for lesbian, gay, and bi equal rights.

recent gay and lesbian books which would serve as literary gifts for friends and loved ones. Some are from major publishers and will be easily available; others are from smaller publishers and may require special ordering..

Alyson Publications has issued two new

THE MOSTLY UNFABULOUS

LOVE MINUS FOUR; DAYDREAM ABOUT INSIGNIFICANT PARTS OF HIS BODY

Doug's Elbow.

(Doug's Elbow hair)

Dod

Members of the Tribe, by Michael Willhoite ($24.95, hardcover, 127 pp.) is a collection of caricatures of famous gays and lesbians (many of them not self-acknowledged), with accompanying humorous commentaries. Included are drawings of indi-

SOCIAL LIFE OF ETHAN GREEN...

LOVE MINUS THREE

TALK ENDLESSLY TO HIM BY PHONE,

You P

Patty's

only seen The Sights a girl Can See From BROOKLYN Heights

HOW ABOUT SHIRT

OFF P~~ I♡

HAIRY, SWEATY

PECSAVI

DUNNO

PASTA I

GUESS

BUCKY

SAYS

THEY

BROKE

WHOW!

BOUT GOING FOR A BIKE RIDE ON SUN JAY?www BRING A PICKNIC wW.DREAMT ABOUT YOU LAST NIGHT I'D RATHER Show YOUN CHICKEN PROBABLY

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viduals as diverse as composer Franz Schubert, theologian Paul Tillich, partygiver Elsa Maxwell, and food writer Craig Claiborne. Michael Willhoite is most notorious for writing and illustrating the gaythemed children's book Daddy's Roommate (Alyson), which has been at the center of a number of censorship cases in libraries around the country. Most of the drawings originally appeared in the Washington Blade.

Highly recommended is the seventh edition of A Legal Guide for Lesbian and Gay Couples, by attorneys Hayden Curry, Denis Clifford and Robin Leonard (Nolo Press, $21.95, paper). While it does not replace the services of a competent attorney, it gives very useful advice for couples in such matters as buying and renting property, wills and estate planning, durable powers of attorney, etc. The language is clear, and there are many examples. It is an excellent book to read before you go to your lawyer's office.

Tom Bianchi's Extraordinary Friends (St. Martin's Press, $50, hardcover) is a sequel to his highly successful book of photographs, Out of the Studio (St. Martin's Press, 1991). While Out of the Studio featured images of nude gay men, Extraordinary Friends includes striking nude photos of both men and women. There is none of the studied "arrangement" or aggression of Mapplethorpe; neither will you find oddities, deformities, or much diversity. Rather, these are pictures of gorgeous, mostly white, men and women comfortable with themselves, joyous in their gay and lesbian lives.

One note: the review copy sent by St. Martin's had a loose signature which fell out the first time I opened the book. Before you plunk down your fifty bucks, check the binding.

Edmund White's. Genet: A Biography (Knopf, $35, hardcover, 728 pp.) has just been published to rapturous reviews. (A feature review is forthcoming in the Chronicle.) It is a major work about one of the most influential literary figures in the twentieth century, whose gayness was an intrinsic part of his life and work. White is well known for his previous books, which include Nocturnes for the King of Naples, States of Desire: Travels in Gay America, and A Boy's Own Story. This biography is highly recommended.

Oxford University Press has published Noel & Cole: The Sophisticates by Stephen Citron ($25, hardcover, 360 pp.). A duál life-and-works biography of contemporaries Noel Coward and Cole Porter, Citron also examines briefly each man's work, using previously unpublished manuscripts, lyrics, and scores. There is little emphasis on the mens' homosexuality-Cole's summer parties at the suburban Cleveland estate of Mark Hanna were notorious-although it is acknowledged.

A popular culture icon of a later generation is the subject of Madonnarama: Essays on Sex and Popular Culture, edited by Lisa Frank and Paul Smith (Cleis Press, $9.95, paper; $24.95, cloth, 184 pp.). The Material Girl gets a good going over in this collection by the likes of author and safe sex artist

COUNTDOWN TO LOVE... LOVE MINUS Two: IGNORE HIS POLITICS..

AND THAT'S WHY IT'S SO CRITICAL THAT WE ESTABLISH

A MILITARY PRESENCE IN THE ORKNEYS...

HE'S So

HOT

RTO

LOVE MINUS ONE: SECRETLY WRITE POETRY ABOUT HIM. awful

his eyes glisten like Shuning stars watermelon seeds... except They're green.... His sense of Humor's Keen"..

I'm filled with Love when I Hear His Voice. IF He was a car He'd be a

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