ABSTRACT

George Stambolian, Terri de la Peña, Audre Lorde, Paul Monette, Edmund White, and Jaime Manrique are just six of the writers represented in this collection of forty contemporary lesbian and gay short stories. Gathered together for the first time in one volume are writings by both lesbians and gay men who represent a multiplicity of ethnic and racial backgrounds. Irene Zahava has compiled a unique and necessary collection, selecting stories for their artistic power and for their treatment of topics that are significant in lesbian and gay life and politics today. An alternative thematic table of contents allows the reader to understand lesbian and gay life according to its most culturally and politically significant themes: childhood/growing up; coming out/finding community; families; oppression/resistance; bisexuality; relationships/friendships; AIDS; and aging/dying.

part |63 pages

Childhood/Growing Up

chapter |7 pages

Ben’s Eyes

chapter |9 pages

Myths

chapter |4 pages

Buddies

chapter |7 pages

Ceremonies

chapter |14 pages

Sacred Ups of the Bronx

part |37 pages

Coming Out/Finding Community

chapter |8 pages

Sister Safety Pin

chapter |5 pages

Growing in Defiance

chapter |2 pages

Letter to Mama

chapter |6 pages

Shouts of Joy

chapter |8 pages

Mujeres Morenas

chapter |8 pages

Don’t Explain

part |59 pages

Families

chapter |15 pages

Cultural Revolution

chapter |4 pages

Mothers Know

chapter |12 pages

Enrollment

chapter |20 pages

In My Father’s Car

chapter |8 pages

River of Names

part |54 pages

Oppression/Resistance

chapter |13 pages

A Letter to Harvey Milk

chapter |13 pages

Fruitstand II: Honeydew Moon

chapter |12 pages

Country People

chapter |10 pages

Public Display

chapter |6 pages

Kissing Doesn’t Kill

part |37 pages

Bisexuality

chapter |11 pages

Humming

chapter |17 pages

Meeting Imelda Marcos

chapter |9 pages

The Juliette Low Legacy

part |63 pages

Relationships/Friendships

chapter |10 pages

Is this Enough for you?

chapter |12 pages

When you Grow to Adultery

chapter |13 pages

Trespassing

chapter |8 pages

The Day Carmen Maura Kissed me

chapter |4 pages

The Dress

chapter |16 pages

Deer Out of Season

part |93 pages

Aids

chapter |9 pages

Despair: August 1987

chapter |21 pages

Halfway Home

chapter |10 pages

Portland, Maine: An Essay

chapter |17 pages

Running on Empty

chapter |30 pages

A Good Man

part |17 pages

Aging/Dying

chapter |7 pages

D.O.M

chapter |10 pages

In the Life