Archive for the Queer Fiction Category


Summer Reading: The Grave Soul by Ellen Hart

September 30th, 2015

GSELHJLOne of the most delightful things about the novel Maria-sama ga Miteru ~Ibara no Mori was the description of Sei, the compulsive reader, looking for stories that reflected what she was going through, this unspoken, confusing and many ways, distressing love of another girl. She found things about homosexuality, of course, that treated it as a pathology and, based on the descriptions of the stuff she read, she found herself staring down the Well of Loneliness and other dire lesbian classics.

I loved this section of the novel, because I too was young, and combing through the library, trying to find books that didn’t make me want to stab myself. I wasn’t, thank the gods, looking for confirmation…I just wanted to read a good book with lesbians.

I was lucky. I found Desert of the Heart, by Jane Rule and Beebo Brinker,  by Ann Bannon and I found lesbian mysteries. Murder at the Nightwood Bar by Katherine V. Forrest launched me into a 1990s full of volumes of lesbian-protagonist mysteries. Naiad Press was publishing them in droves and I was haunting Barnes and Noble, (this was so long ago Borders did not yet exist and B&N’s “Gay and Lesbian Fiction” shelves were a second home) buying them and borrowing them at the library, Dozens, maybe hundreds of lesbians with long-dead lovers, with drinking problems who weren’t out, who were out and suffering from institutional homophobia, being stalked and tortured and beaten and eventually catching the bad guy. So, so many mysteries. So many, in fact, I became absolutely sick to death of mysteries.

At then end of the decade, there were two authors left I could stand. Forrest kept writing, left Naiad for a major publisher and her character, Kate Delafield, out and comfortable at last, became more comfortable for me to read. And Ellen Hart, whose Jane Lawless mysteries scratched an itch for lesbian characters who were not suffering from homophobia, alcoholism, or trauma. Although Jane had the prerequisite long-dead lover, she ran a restaurant, had a female Oscar Wilde as a side-kick and was quite likable. I always liked Jane.

But, as I mention, I left mysteries behind me. And I had not realized that Ellen Hart was still writing them. Until last year, when I discovered Ellen Hart on Facebook,I also discovered Jane once more. And just after I had caught up to Hart’s last book, (the Fates must have found this hilarious, I swear I can hear them giggling,) it tuns out that her new publisher is an imprint of a large publisher and her editor is a friend of mine.  And so, with thanks to the publisher, I had a chance to make the last of my summer reads, Ellen Hart’s newest Jane Lawless mystery, The Grave Soul.

It was an excellent book.

The construction was turned inside out a bit, so we begin with the aftermath of the crisis, then work our way back in to it. We, the reader, always know that aftermath and so the tension is turned way up throughout the book without us actually having to go through the crisis itself. When all too many novels these days are merely prologues to violence, stalking and torture scenes in the name of “suspense,” this approach worked to create a lot more suspense without having to subject us to violence porn.

It was good to revisit Jane Lawless, the restaurateur who sleuths on the side, good that she broke up with her horrible girlfriend in the last novel, good that they did not get back together in this one. Cordelia, her side-kick, is always too much to be believable, but that is what we like about her. She’s the comedic relief in the Shakespearean sense of the word.

The story was tightly written. The mystery was a classic small-town murder, but one in which Miss Marple had to come from out of town in order to make sense of it. And the ending was appropriately Agatha-Christie-like as well.

All in all, an excellent revisit to an obsession of my youth, long before Yuri manga, and long before Jane (or I) was so comfortable with saying the word “gay.” In this case, I was able to come home again and find that what has changed, has changed for the better.

It was a good read, and I’m glad that Ellen Hart is still out there plugging away at it. ^_^

Ratings:

Overall – 8

Facebook is your friend. Ellen Hart, Katherine V. Forrest, Ann Bannon and many other lesbian writers of the past and present are there and you should totally take a look at their books. This is your literature.





Lesbian Novel: Dolly Dingle, Lesbian Landlady

February 2nd, 2015

DollyDLLA few years ago, I discovered Monica Nolan’s genius with the Big Book of Lesbian Horse stories. Following that, I’ve read and reviewed Bobby Blanchard, Lesbian Gym Teacher, Lois Lenz, Lesbian Secretary, and Maxie Mainwairing, Lesbian Dilettante.

Dolly Dingle, Lesbian Landlady continues the saga of the lady-loving ladies of Magdalena Arms in Bay City. Like the earlier entries in the series, Dolly Dingle, is simultaneously a romp through lesbian pulp novel tropes, a drawing room comedy and a mystery story.

The elderly landlady of The Magdalena Arms is taken ill and resident Dolly steps in until Mrs. DeWitt is well again.  While acting as stand-in landlady, Dolly starts cleaning up the old place, until she learns that it’s not just that the carpets that are worn and out of repair. The finances are in serious disarray and if Dolly can’t think of some way to get them all out of a predicament, the Arms will be closed and torn down!

Unfortunately for her, Dolly is also trying to balance her own career, and not one, but two, love affairs, neither of which seem to be going quite the right way.

Will Dolly decide whether it’s Kay or Arlene she loves? And what is with all that stuff in the basement? Will Dolly and the gals save the Arms? Find out in this thrilling – well, highly amusing – installment of the Bay City series by Monica Nolan! /end AM radio announcer voice/

As always, I adore Nolan’s campy mixture of mid-century YA literature and pulp prose (that is, apparently, entirely on purpose.) The mystery this time started in one place and ended in another, but it was a terrific ride getting there. And ultimately, the mystery part was more developed than the love affairs.

A notable addition to the ever-changing cast is Jackie, an African-American nurse. I hope we’ll get her story in the near future…and I’m still holding out for a barracks romance story one day. ^_^

Ratings:

Overall – 8

As always, I’m looking forward to the next pulp novel adventure in Bay City. ^_^





LGBTQ Novel: Atashi no Kanojo (あたしの彼女)

January 22nd, 2015

anknWe’re very familiar with Mori Natsuko-sensei’s work here on Okazu.So, it comes as no surprise really that her newest Atashi no Kanojo (あたしの彼女) is another romp through various forms of adult play and BDSM.

Notably, this novel comes with a cover drawn by Morishima Akiko-sensei which, as far as it goes, actually is pretty good illustration of the content. There are no other illustrations in the book, as it is not a light novel.

Sae is a college student, in love with her classmate Hanano. Hanano returns the feeling, but in a private conversation, explains she is not interested in sex, only masturbation. If Sae wants to be her “lover”, she’ll use Sae’s sexual exploits as masturbatory fodder. (The word in Japanese for this, btw, is “Okazu”. That was one of the meanings I had in mind when I chose the name for this blog. Okazu is more commonly use to describe little dishes of various food items, as well, which fit into the idea that the blog covers this and that. And, finally, it’s a nickname for lesbian sex, as it’s not “the main course”, but a “side dish.”)

Sae agrees to Hanano’s term and find herself torturing a nice, attractive male classmate, Eiji, for Hanano’s pleasure. Hanano also sets up a session with a butch lesbian Midori. Sae becomes increasingly unsatisfied with her “relationship” with Hanano, as she never gets to so much as touch the other woman. When she meets up with Midori on what she thinks is her own, she finds that Hanano is already there and is watching them.

One last time, Sae is the top to pretty (and rather sweet) Eiji, but Sae’s thoughts stray towards Midori. She’s attempting to break away from Hanano, but finds that her “lover” is two steps ahead of her. Midori straps Sae down, then calls both Hanano and Eiji to join them, As Midori directs Eiji to have sex with Sae, Sae suddenly realizes that all along, Hanano was the sadist and she, like Eiji, has always been a masochist.

Like Sae, I grew a little tired of the “relationship” about halfway through the book. It was an easy read and I suppose it was sexy, if that’s what one is into, but there was never any kind of emotional development for any of the characters that convinced me to like them. This was very much a case where I would have liked to see Sae be plucked out of this book and find someone nice in another story. ^_^

Ratings:

Overall – 6

It was okay. All of Mori’s typical fetishes, without any of her fabulous outrageous humor or geeky wonderfulness. In the end I decided that the one thing I never, ever want in my porn is an ironic ending. ^_^;





Summer Reading: Hilda and The Midnight Giant (English)

August 1st, 2014

hamgIt’s about midsummer here, and the weather has been unnaturally pleasant, so I’ve been outside playing, rather than curling up in the A/C. As a result I’m hugely behind on my reading, but…no regrets. Getting to take long walks in the Northeast woodlands of the USA is as good for my soul as reading comics. ^_^

But, when I get a chance to read a really unique, fun, kid-friendly,  girl-friendly comic, you just know I have to share it with you!  Thanks to the fantastic Tucker Stone at Nobrow Press, I had the chance to read the delightful Hilda and the Midnight Giant.

Hilda and her Mom live outside the town. They seem to have a comfortable relationship, and Hilda is studious and dedicated. When it turns out that she and her mother are living in the middle of a civilization of small, invisible people, Hilda has to figure out how to make peace between her and and entire race of beings that consider her their enemy.

As Hilda wrestles with the politics of her neighbors, she also discovers a giant occupying the same valley. Her inquiries take her from the mayor of the local town through which she and her mother have been walking to the king of the civilization, while she tracks down the giant who comes by at night.

The adventure is, in a word, strange.

You could make a case for it being an allegory about people sharing space on the planet, but that’s not really what it’s about at all. ^_^ Hilda learns about bureaucracy and how being in the right place at the right time is as good as dedicated effort. It’s a life lesson that would serve many a young person well and for that reason alone, I’m inclined to recommend this book. But more importantly, it’s a rollicking, rattingly tale of little people and giants and has a wholly unexpected end. Really unexpected.

Luke Pearson’s writing is great. Hilda is a smart kid, she asks a lot of questions, but mostly the right questions…and she really processes the answers, to  come up with well thought out solutions. Mom speaks to Hilda like she’s a smart kid, so there’s none of that creepy condescending tone with which adults so often address kids. The art is, for lack of a better word “cartoony.” The giant is a tall, hairy column, the little people are small capsule-shaped creatures.  There’s no complex artistic rendering here, just straightforward, simple comic art. It’s the story that carries you along.

If you know a young comics reader, or a a child that you’d like to turn into a comics reader – especially if they love fairy-tale-like stories – this would be a great place to start them. Hilda isn’t a superhero, but she sure saves the day.

Ratings:

Art – 6
Story – 9
Character – 8

Overall – A solid 8 and I hope to be able to read some of the other Hilda books in the future.





Summer Reading: Chocolates for Breakfast (English)

October 20th, 2013

cfbWell into autumn as we are, I had one last Summer Reading choice on my plate.  Back in August, I mentioned the republishing of Pamela Moore’s mid-century novel about dissipated youth, Chocolates for Breakfast. AfterEllen.com discusses the author’s life and death and reprints the censored passages in which the main character thinks about her feelings for the  English teacher on which she has a crush. These passages are still not included in the text of the book as published, but Moore’s son discusses them in the afterword.

Despite those passages, perhaps because of them, I would not call this book a “lesbian” novel in any meaningful way. The crush is exactly that – a crush. It’s ephemeral, a fantasy of time and place, and lack of other stimulus.

However, in every way this book is something that should be read. In the same way we are asked to read The Great Gatsby or Catcher in the Rye, Chocolates for Breakfast stands as a piece of classic American literature, with insight to a time and place that was never quite real even when it was. For those of you still in school, being asked to read either of toese books, I’d suggest reading Chocolates for a unique subject for compare and contrast.

Trying to tell you what Chocolates is about is more challenging than you might expect. It’s a tale of dissipated privilege; the sex, drinking, and hopeless ennui than comes with having too much of everything and too little of anything with meaning. But don’t let that get in your way of enjoying it. ^_^ In fact, despite the fact that my childhood was nothing at all like Courtney’s, I was able to deeply sympathize with her disassociation and feelings of frustration at 15 that the adults around her were less mature than she. In many ways, we are all Courtney at some point, whether we were kids in the 00s or the 60s.

Ratings:

Overall – 8

My next “Summer reading” book will be Hild by Nicola Griffith. Feel free to read it as well and give your opinion in the comments! No deadline, I probably won’t get to it for a bit. ^_^