Books for gay grown-ups: Martin Duberman picks five titles to unite us. (Summer Reading).It may be our community's toughest challenge: We really don't know one another, nor do we always get why we should. We asked this astute historian to recommend five books indispensable to any gay person who wants to learn about the real range of our experiences and needs. Happily, he gave us six. HISTORY A Desired Past By Leila J. Rupp Leila J. Rupp (born 1950) is a historian, feminist, and professor of women's studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara. Her areas of interest include: women's movements, sexuality, LGBT and women's history. This is a brief, brilliant, and comprehensive overview of who we--all of us--have been and therefore currently are. (University of Chicago, $16) LGBT WORKING-CLASS ISSUES Out at Work: Building a Gay-Labor Alliance By Kitty Krupat and Patrick McCreery A collection of pioneering essays by people including Cathy J. Cohen cohen or kohen (Hebrew: “priest”) Jewish priest descended from Zadok (a descendant of Aaron), priest at the First Temple of Jerusalem. The biblical priesthood was hereditary and male. , John J. Sweeney, and Riki Anne Wilchins. Most LGBT people are working-class, whether that's defined according to income, job status, or educational level. But their lives and issues are usually ignored both by organized labor and by our own political organizations. If our movement is ever to become genuinely inclusive and representative, we must move this potential constituency to center stage--where it belongs. (University of Minnesota (body, education) University of Minnesota - The home of Gopher. http://umn.edu/. Address: Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA. , $19.95) THE HEARTLAND (neither coast, that is) Men Like That: A Southern Queer History By John Howard Howard debunks the myth that everything of importance in LGBT life has al ways been and always will be confined to coastal cities. His book is a wonderful antidote to the preening provincialism pro·vin·cial·ism n. 1. A regional word, phrase, pronunciation, or usage. 2. The condition of being provincial; lack of sophistication or perspective. Also called provinciality. 3. of the Los Angeles-San Francisco-New York City axis. (University of Chicago, $27.50) INTERNATIONAL Different Rainbows Edited by Peter Drucker This is the book to dampen the excruciating provincialism of the gay community in this country as a whole. The collection of essays in this book about LGBT life elsewhere in the world illuminates the diverse ways in which other cultures and countries have organized sexual and gender behavior. It's an eye-opener, particularly for those cultural imperialists (meaning most of us) who assume that our patterns are universal--or should be. (Millivres, $19.95) THE "MALE" GENDER How Sex Changed: A History of Transsexuality in the United States By Joanne Meyerowitz For the multitude of gay who scorn "effeminacy Effeminacy Blue Boy Gainsborough painting depicting princely lad with sissyish overtones. [Br. Art.: Misc.] Fauntleroy, Little Lord title-inheriting, yellow-curled sissy in velvet. [Am. Lit. ," ape and parody macho styles in masculinity, and ignore and despise transgendered people, this book will taste like medicine. Believe me, you need it. It can cure a multitude of hidebound hidebound said of skin that is not easily lifted from the subcutaneous tissue. Occurs in emaciated animals because of the absence of fat and connective tissue rather than absence of fluid. stereotypes. (Harvard, $29.95) Come to think of it, you must not miss Daniel Boyarin's Unheroic Conduct (University of California The University of California has a combined student body of more than 191,000 students, over 1,340,000 living alumni, and a combined systemwide and campus endowment of just over $7.3 billion (8th largest in the United States). , $24.95). It's an astonishing historical reclamation of a nonviolent, nurturing model of masculinity. Author and Distinguished Professor of History at City University of New York The City University of New York (CUNY; acronym: IPA pronunciation: [kjuni]), is the public university system of New York City. , Duberman is writing the authorized biography of Lincoln Kirstein. His novel Haymarket appears this fall. |
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