Groundbreaking Lesbian Author Dorothy Allison Has Died, and More Queer Book News
It’s been a while since I’ve rounded up queer bookish links to share with you, which is a shame, because there are so many of them. Expect to see more digests like this in the future, because I want to shout out the great writing about queer books that’s happening on the rest of the internet.
Today, I have some queer recommendations lists (of course), a sortable database of hundreds of Black sapphic books, new queer Indigenous books, and some suggestions for what to do now in the wake of the election results.
Dorothy Allison Has Died
Dorothy Allison—lesbian, feminist, author of Bastard Out of Carolina and other books—has died at 75 years old. She was an incredible writer and a fierce advocate for feminist and lesbian rights. She also co-created the Lesbian Sex Mafia, “the oldest continuously running women’s BDSM support and education group in the country”! As a teen, I read Two or Three Things I Know for Sure, a memoir by Dorothy Allison, and I was stunned at how powerful it was at under 100 pages. We’ve lost a legend. You can read more about her and her passing at Autostraddle, the Advocate, LitHub, The New York Times, Xtra Magazine, and more.
The Queer Healing of Sapphic Comics
I don’t think I ever shared this interview I did with Popsugar about sapphic comics and graphic novels. In it, Emma Glassman-Hughes gives a brief overview of the history of sapphic comics and how they’ve evolved as well as what’s next for the medium. It was also a nice excuse to look back at the early days of the Lesbrary (my sapphic book blog) and what’s changed in the almost 15 years since.
What Do We Do Now?
In the wake of the election, queer Americans (and many of the rest of us, too) are asking what we do now. There are countless options, but here are a few ways to get started.
Buy Books for a Good Cause with the Auction for Trans Lifeline: This auction is raising money for Trans Lifeline and runs until 6:00 PST on November 18th. Bid on a queer book, trans artwork, or something else. You can also donate without bidding on an item.
Here’s How We Can Help Each Other in Trump’s America (and Beyond): Autostraddle has put together a guide for what to do next, from protecting your own safety to doing mutual aid and building up your community.
Think About Your Book Buying Dollars: As readers, it’s worthwhile to think about which voices we’re uplifting in our reading choices, in the books we recommend, and in our book buying. Think about buying from Black-owned bookstores, Indigenous-owned bookstores, queer-owned bookstores, and feminist bookstores. Most can ship around the country. Consider whether you want your book buying budget to line Jeff Bezos’s pockets. Prioritize reading, uplifting, and purchasing books by marginalized authors.
…And a Bunch of Queer Books Lists
I couldn’t do a roundup of queer bookish links without including some recommendation lists, and these really need no commentary.
- Check out this database of hundreds of Black WLW and sapphic books.
- Here are some new queer Indigenous books written by Indigenous authors to read for Native American Heritage Month. You can also click through to last year’s list for even more recommendations.
- Read these 12 books about queer Latinx history.
- These are the best butch heroines in literature…at least, according to Mikaella Clements and Onjulu Datta.
- Which queer-coded book is your gay root? According to this quiz, mine is Anne of Green Gables, which I didn’t read until I was an adult, but I did find it very queer coded.
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What have you been reading lately? Let’s chat in the comments!
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