Book reviews

Reviews supplied by Rebecca Kagan

The Talented Miss Highsmith

Joan Schenkar   $65.00

St Martin’s Press

A fabulous and epic biography detailing the secret life and serious art of the amazing author, Patricia Highsmith. Pat Highsmith lived a bizarre personal life, and was a prolific writer of fiction, journals, diaries, letters, and comics. Born in 1921 she grew up in Greenwich Village and was an out and active lesbian in the New York literary world of the 40s and 50s.

Two of her best known books became movies Strangers On A Train and The Talented Mr Ripley. She openly loved many women but strangely wrote her one and only lesbian novel initially under a pseudonym.  The Price Of Salt (later renamed Carol) was based on her own experiences and was considered her most personal work. It was also said to be the first lesbian novel written with a happy ending, as up to that time lesbian characters had usually come to a sticky end so to speak, murder, suicide, or total rejection and loneliness. She travelled widely, lived in Europe, was equally loved and hated, and deteriorated into severe alcoholism, but was always a charismatic, mysterious, and fascinating woman. A great read.

 

Girl Crazy : Coming Out Erotica

Sacchi Green ed   $28.95

Cleis Press

Unique collection of sexy stories looking at coming out from every angle, whether coming out to yourself, to your family, or to the world. And what could be more exciting than the  memories of that first time.  Erotic stories for bed time reading.

 

Truelesbianlove.com

Carsen Taite   $27.95

Bold Strokes Books

Mack Lewis is a successful businesswoman, and the only love in her life comes from the pages of the romance novels she devours. Her best friend Jordan gets plenty of girls but she is phobic about commitment. They are both persuaded by friends to try internet dating and pretty soon they discover that true lesbian love is only a click of the mouse away.