Our first addition comes from twitter … @BetsyBurtis says “The Education of Harriet Hatfield by May Sarton. Beautifully written and it’s about a bookseller too!”.

I was looking through my Goodreads shelf of LGBT works and was interested to find they’re mostly YA titles… so from that, Perry Moore’s “Hero” is a fun ‘coming-of-age LGBT/superhero’ fantasy; John Green & David Levithan’s “Will Grayson, Will Grayson” lives up to the quality you’d expect from those two authors; and Cris Beam’s “I Am J” is a great novel to shed some light for those who want to learn more about what transgendered individuals have to go through to find acceptance, etc.

For adult titles, in Sarah Winman’s recent “When God Was a Rabbit” the main character’s brother (with whom she holds a close relationship) is gay as well, and it’s a terrific read. Was just reviewed for the NYTimes Book Review.

It won’t be out until August, but I would urge everyone to read Moffie (Europa Editions) by André Carl van der Merwe. It is an autobiographical debut novel about a young gay man conscripted into the South African army during the final years of apartheid.

Great list! Here are a few more of my favorites: Family Dancing, A Single Man, Rubyfruit Jungle, A Home at the End of the World, Member of the Wedding, Was, Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit, Other Voices, Other Rooms, Orlando

Great podcast, as always!

One of my all time favorite books is Corelli’s Mandolin. It is a story of many different types of love, but one of the most touching is a man named Carlo Piero Guercio and his love for Captain Corelli. I’m pretty sure I cried at that part.

Another book which I loved and have read a couple of times is called Flying Under Bridges by Sandi Toksvig. It’s about a middle aged woman and her at times funny, at times tragic, life. She has a lesbian friend and she deals beautifully with the issues they confront. So worth the read if you can find the book!

Lastly, Maurice by E.M. Forster. Published posthumously because he wasn’t sure if it “was worth it” to write about same-sex love in 1913 (when it was written); it was published in 1971. I haven’t read it, but have always wanted to.

For LGBT month, I must share the love for Maria McCann’s gripping historical novel ‘As Meat Loves Salt.’ Set during the English Civil War during a time when gay relationships were a ‘hanging offense,’ it tells the story of a obsessive romance between two male soldiers. I discovered it after the author Lionel Shriver raved about it on NPR. A link to that story is here:

http://www.npr.org/2010/11/01/130976180/a-steamy-soldier-affair-in-as-meat-loves-salt

McCann’s writing is impeccable and transporting. It may not be a feel good story, but it’s truly amazing!

Good for you for having LGBT titles for Pride Month! Hooray! I’d like to throw in my 2 cents, or 3 dollar bill for that matter. The ones mentioned are older titles but here are some newer titles to discover:

1.Another Country by James Baldwin was a much better read for me. Loved it and it shaped my consciousness.

2. Hidden by Tomas Mournian is an amazing new novel of kids who escape from “cure” centers and hole up in a safe house in San Francisco. The writing is fresh and riveting.

3. Will Grayson, Will Grayson by John Green and David Levithan focuses on two high school boys named Will Grayson. One gay, one not. Very uplifting and perfect for high school age.

4. James Lear has a bawdy series of mysteries set in Great Britain with an American doctor as the amateur sleuth. These are very erotic, not for the faint of heart but I know many straight women who love these books. Think Hercule Poirot but having sex with men on every 5th page! Not for everyone but fun for those who want a fast and furious read.

5. One oldie that I loved is The Passion by Jeanette Winterson set at the time of Napoleon but in Venice. A young woman pretends to be a man, and an older woman falls in love with her. The young woman joins Napoleon’s army and a cook falls in love with her. The last third of the book is a glorious piece of writing about love and falling in love.

Oh there’s so much more! So many good NEW books. Like:

Sing You Home by Jodi Picoult
Dairy Queen by Catherine Gilbert Murdock
Queer History of the U. S. by Michael Bronski

Sorry to go on… I’ll stop for now.

Yay for Gay Pride Month and to BOTNS for celebrating LGBT books! I’d like to add these to the growing list of goodies:
–Tipping the Velvet by Sarah Waters: a Victorian sex romp of a novel but with great writing. I adore Nan, the main character. Not for the young or faint of heart. The BBC adaptation was pretty good, too.
–Patience and Sarah by Isabel Miller: more historical fiction set in 19th c America and I think its loosely based on a real lesbian couple.
–Scars by Cheryl Rainfield: a contemporary YA novel about a young lesbian who copes with the pain of abuse by cutting herself. Intense and realistic.

Chris Bohjalian’s Tran-Sister Radio was a the first book that came to mind. The story is about a woman who falls in love with a man about getting ready to go through a sex change operation.

I really enjoy the podcasts. My suggestions for a LGBT book is Memory Board by Jane Rule.It is about two woman who are lesbian and one has Alzheimers. The other takes care of her. It is a beautiful story.

I am a big Chris Bohjalian fan too. Like the above poster, when I listened to this podcast I immediately thought of Trans-Sister Radio. A most interesting book.

[...] can hear the podcast either on the website here or download it from iTunes.  You can also see a rather interesting list of LGBT books that [...]

Ann mentioned the possiblility of reading Fingersmith by Sarah Waters. In adding books to my goodreads account this is what I stated about Fingersmith…

Read this quite some time ago and am currently viewing the movie. The dvd reminds me how much I was originally captured by Water’s book. Everytime I think of it I am reminded of Dicken’s London and Oliver Twist. Fingersmith is historical fiction at its best and packs a few breathtaking surprises to boot. I became a life long Waters fan after reading this one.

The book was wonderful and the movie was not bad either.

Here’s an absolute must-read to be added to the list.

And the Band Played On: Politics, People, and the AIDS Epidemic. It was written by Randy Shilts, San Francisco Chronicle reporter, in 1987. We must never forget the horror of the AIDS epidemic and this book takes the reader through the early regognition and reaction to it.

I’m surprised no one has mentioned The Front Runner by Patricia Nell Warren. Some may argue that it’s not terribly well written, but it’s a classic in LGBT books and captures a time in the mid-1970′s when the gay movement started to really catch hold in the US. It has some parallels to the movie “A Single Man”.

Great review! You actually overviewed some curious things here. I came across it by using Yahoo and I’ve got to admit that I already subscribed to the site, it’s very great

I am looking forward to reading We the Animals by Torres.

I’ve heard a lot of great things about is God Loves Hair by Vivek Shraya. It was a Lambda Literary Award finalist this year.

3 YA LBGT titles I loved this year.
Huntress by Malinda Lo
With or Without You by Brain Farrey
Down to the Bone by Mayra Lazara Dole – this was actually a reread.

Also here’s a list of LGBT YA novels with characters of color I did last year. Will update soon

http://thehappynappybookseller.blogspot.com/2010/06/lbgt-ya-novels-w-characters-of-color.html

I second “Memory Board”. This Canadian novel is full of tender and thoughtful characters. The woman who doesn’t have Alzheimer’s has a twin brother that she hasn’t spent much time with over the years because his wife wasn’t comfortable with her sister-in-law’s lifestyle. After his wife’s death, the man sets out to reestablish a relationship with his sister and her partner. His sensitivity and caring are beautifully depicted. I also enjoyed his grandsons’ respectful acceptance of the two women into their family, and the creative ways that they deal with the woman with Alzheimer’s.

If you like Jane Rule, I recommend the documentary “Fiction and Other Truths: A Film About Jane Rule”.

Thanks for the shout out on your podcast, Ann! I’m just catching up after BEA & closing up my day job to go on sabbatical as a full-time writer, and just listened to the podcast today and was thrilled to hear you mention my recommendation, and my book! So kind of you. I should’ve tweeted that Edinburgh is a bit dark & won’t be for everyone, but it is beautifully written. Thanks for mentioning Alan Hollinghurst, too–would be nice to go back & reread his earlier books.

I’ve decided to listen your podcasts while I’m at the gym; it’s to entice me to get my butt there. No gym, no BOTNS.

THANK YOU from a gay listener for doing a LGBT fiction show!!!! Some that I would add to the list are Patricia Nell Warren, The Front Runner, Gore Vidal Pillar and the City, but the absolute best novel which I can not believe people have not talked about is by Michael Jensen called Frontiers. This is like Brokeback Mtn but better set in the 1700s on the frontier in WY. I have lent this to many of my non gay friends and they have loved it. The relationship and intimacy in the book is tasteful and very romatic. PLEASE READ THIS BOOK!!! It is one of the best gay novels ever written. And believe me Ive read them all. I did love Perry Moore’s book Hero and was lucky enough to correspond with him and got him to sign my book before his passing which is sad because he was a terrific author.THANKS FOR ALL YOU GUYS DO!!!

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Gay Novels