I am currently reading a ton of books with a GLBTQ focus because as a panelist for the GLBTQ category for the Indie Lit Awards, I have access to a large list of books published in 2010 that fall into this category. Recently, I was questioned about my current read, Missed Her by Ivan Coyote, and after telling this person – whom I barely knew – about the book and why I was reading it, I was asked the following two questions: “Why would you want to read books about gay people?” And “How can a straight person review books about gay people?” Followed up by the line: “That doesn’t make sense.” Typically, this wouldn’t bother me, but it is not the first time in the last year that my reading of GLBTQ literature has been questioned. I have even received a few emails based on the blog. Some of the self-righteous emailers believe I am going to hell because I am "promoting sins against God and man"; others think I am "trying to identify with a set I have no relation to" and that "reading queer does not make me cool". But back to the face-to-face conversation.My first task was to educate this person about GLBTQ and how the term gay is not some sort of catchall for everyone who doesn’t fit normative definitions of gender and sexuality. At which point, it seemed both questions were still perfectly relevant according to my questioner. After all, I am biologically, culturally, and socially female. I like men. A lot. Primarily straight, stereotypically manly looking men. I prefer my men to be rather male, lacking effeminate qualities, although I do like my men to shower regularly, be clean-shaven, and keep the bodily expulsions to a minimum.
So, back to tackling the two questions: Why would I want to read books about GLBTQ people? Uh, because it’s interesting and important and universally relevant. To me, the question is ridiculous. Why would I want to read books about covert spies or people living in Victorian London or little trains that think they can? I am not a train in case you were wondering.
As for the second question: How can a straight person review books about GLBTQ people? Well, that one may be a little more complicated, but I will give it a shot. Wait, did I mention I am not a train? I did? Okay. If I can review a book about a warrior from ancient Greece, I can review a book about a trans female in contemporary New York. Actually, I am willing to bet some seriously large amounts of cash that I have a great deal more in common with the second than the first. But to be clear, I still think I could review a book about a trans female warrior from ancient Greece too. Actually, someone should write a book about that; it would be interesting.
I am not going to pretend that I can fully relate to every GLBTQ experience. For one, I, as mentioned previously, am straight. For two, any lesbian experiences or tendencies I may exhibit are generally met with quite positive reinforcement as I am female and straight, and, as I’m sure you all know, that’s just freaking hot to my preferred pool of partner possibilities, straight men.
At the same time, all people have struggles. Every group (and individual) suffers from the weight of stereotypes, expectations, biases, and otherwise limiting perspectives based on preconceived notions of who a person should be (whether because of gender, race, religion, career, physicality, etc.). I can sympathize with the struggle to be accepted, to be appreciated, to be taken seriously. Hell I can empathize. I think we all can. At the core of it all, we are all human beings, as Ana pointed out in the comments to my post yesterday.
Now is it okay if I read GLBTQ books in public?
An excellent post, Trisha! I just can't understand wanting to set limits on the kind of experiences/realities we can relate to. Isn't the whole point of reading to step into the shoes of someone who ISN'T exactly like us? And if that's possible for people from other time periods/cultures/countries/ethnicity/etc, why on earth shouldn't it also go for gender identity and sexual orientation?
ReplyDeleteThat makes me really sad that people have said those things. =(
ReplyDeleteYour post made me laugh, but it is a serious subject.
ReplyDeleteOne thing in those comments make me think that those people consider the gay community as non-human. Don't they realise that gay people also belong to humanity? Reading is kind of getting a view on universal experience with its many differences.
My lesbian friend in Italy has to face many obstacles; yet, when I talk to her about relationships, the same feelings are there (although not for the same people), but like me she has crushes, like me she finds it difficult to negotiate studies and love relationships, like me she can get jealous, like me she is heartbroken when the relationship ends, etc.
Silly, silly comments! I would retort with mentioning names of famous/canonical bisexual or homosexual authors. Would they condemn you for reading Virginia Woolf or Marcel Proust?
I love it! You tell those smarmy bastards! (hee hee) I think it is ridiculous that you should even have to defend yourself. All well-made points that you present here. Brava!
ReplyDelete*stands up and applauds* Bravo!!! Love this post, Trisha.
ReplyDeleteOne of the easiest ways to point out the ridiculousness of this is just to reverse; I'm sorry, I didn't know I was only allowed to identify with queer characters (and if we have to narrow down to aces, I've got the Doctor and Holmes and that's it, that's cruel, people). And word to everything Ana said.
ReplyDeleteGreat post! The whole need for it is, as Sandy said, kind of riculous though. I mean, "Why would you want to read books about gay people?" Really? I think that's about as goofy as asking the question, "Why would you want to read any books that are about somebody who isn't exactly the same as you?" I don't know about that person, but I read to see life from another's perspective. I want to hear about different places, different events, different lifestyles from mine. I'll never be able to live in or totally understand somebody else's life whether they're gay or straight or they live in a submarine or in Seattle or 500 years in the past, but reading gives me the chance to slip into someone else's shoes and see the world from their perspective and that's what I love about reading, that opportunity to see life through another's eyes and sometimes even see that while we may be very different, there's still almost always something there that even I can relate to. So, the better question, in my opinion, would be, why *wouldn't* you want to read books about gay people?
ReplyDeleteWow!I cannot believe the first part of that conversation -- isn't, "They are good books" enough of a reason to read anything?
ReplyDeleteI can sort of see where the second part of the conversation is coming from, how it might be hard to assess how accurately the book is portraying a certain experience of being GLBTQ if you are not that yourself. BUT, we all review books about experiences unlike our own all the time -- as you point out -- so it's sort of a silly argument too. Great post, Trisha.
How ridiculous, Trisha. Why on earth would we ever read about folks different from us?! It only makes sense to waste our time reading books if we can already identify completely with both the narrator and author and we can't be challenged in any way by the text.
ReplyDeleteI've been formulating a long reading list of writers who are female, mostly-straight, southern-by-birth, jewish-atheist, no-pierced-ears-and-no-make-up, lefty-pacifist, hard-of-hearing, formerly-academic-historians who are parents on only children and obsessed with reading classics, knitting cabled sweaters and lace shawls, and growing vegetables in the front yard. (If you have any additional recommendations, do let me know.)
I'm afraid I might have to quit reading this blog if you keep insisting on making people think.
Great post. i absolutely loved every word of it. Thank you for posting it. I have never been asked about it, but maybe that is just because who I surround myself with, but if anyone ever questions me on why I read GLBTQ books, I am just going to send them here.
ReplyDeleteIncredible post, Trisha!!! The world is full of small minded people with closed minded agendas. It especially ticks me off when folks try to pretend they have a straight link to God and know who's going to hell and who's not. The God I believe in loves everybody!
ReplyDeleteDoes this mean I can't review vampire books if I'm not a vampire?? ;)
You go, girl! I love this post. Speaking as a man who wrote his master's thesis on late Victorian feminist literature, I know how you feel. One of my favorite profs, who happens to be gay, could not understand why I would choose this particular topic.
ReplyDeleteI read a blog somewhere recently that suggested simply playing dumb with bigoted people. Just genially ask them to explain their statements like you don't understand their reasoning until they are backed into an embarrassing corner.
Sounds like fun.
I absolutely adore this post, Trisha. It makes me sad that there are so many boundary distinctions (I see this with YA as well, though to me that's a little less bothersome than the GLBQT lines). Just the thought that you have to even defend your reading choices makes me a bit ill--even the fact that people are emailing you!? But you've articulated yourself perfectly and I love it!
ReplyDeleteI'm sitting here laughing at this post - so much so that I had to explain myself to the husband - but it's only because it is ridiculous to imagine that you'd have to explain yourself in this way (re: your reading choices). Clearly, the questionner is missing the point. We read for so many different reasons. How boring would it be if we just read about people and experiences that are cookie-cutter and like our own.
ReplyDeleteGreat post! It is always shocking how ignorant people can be.
ReplyDeleteThis is a wonderful post! I mean really, how can people be so ridiculous? We read books about people that are not like us ALL THE TIME. I know that I read about Victorians, drug addicts, detectives, Greek kings and queens, and everything else under the sun and I review it, so why not GLBT lit as well?
ReplyDeleteRidiculous.
Bravo to you. You're awesome!
AWESOME post! I despise ignorant and predjudicial people and unfortunately there are many of them in the world today. I think their numbers may be growing as well.
ReplyDeleteI have never read a GLBTQ book myself, but only because I haven't gotten to one yet. I think your answer was thoughtful and honest and couldn't have been said better :)
As a Real Life Lesbian (tm), I second the statement that you are free, in fact, encouraged to read and review queer books! And so is everyone else that isn't going to be a queerphobic ass. Love this post.
ReplyDeleteGreat post! I love your humor and straight-shooting (he he) writing. I'm always surprised by people's limited awareness of their own prejudices. For me the bottom line is--is it a good story well told? Do I get even a glimmer of insight into what it means to be thoroughly human? Everything else is irrelevant...
ReplyDeleteBrava!!! That's just really all I can say aside from "You rock!" :)
ReplyDeleteI love this post...other than the fact that you have to defend your right to read what you want. I feel like I say this so often but people really need to think before they open their mouths. Great post!
ReplyDeleteYou go girl!! It is nuts to me that people are giving you a hassle about reading these types of books! Like you said, if we could only review books that directly align with our own lifestyles, we'd almost never get to read ANYTHING!! How horrible!!
ReplyDeleteAnd I'm glad you were given "permission"! ; )
Frickin fabulous post! Bravo for standing up for what you believe in and not being pressured by these idiots. It saddens and frustrates me that people react this way, and that they think that as a totally heterosexual woman, you shouldn't be reading about the plights and lives of GLBTQ people. I want to join you and be gay too. If it means that I can be open minded and fair about all walks of life, I would like to say, I am gay too then.
ReplyDeleteAwesome post! I support and applaud you.
ReplyDeleteI was fine with it even before you played the Cass card. But that was pretty much icing on the cake, as the two of you are some of my favorite bloggers. :-D (I'm pretty sure that's grammatically incorrect, but oh well.)
ReplyDeleteFabulous post...especially the part about trains.
Great post Trish!
ReplyDeleteOOPS - missed the "a"
ReplyDeleteTrisha ....
LOL
I can't believe there are people stupid enough to email you about your reading choices. If you want to review books that deal with GLBTQ people or issues, it's your choice. They can always stop visiting your blog. Keep doing what you're doing.
ReplyDeleteI can relate, it's very peculiar, as a man who is quite married to a woman and haos three children, people get kind of squirmy if they catch me reading a GLBT book. Honestly, this is a big anxiety producer for me - ironically in exactly the way you obliquely approached here (not to say I think you were trying to be mean, I know you were playing :) ). Men are assumed to be these hypersexualized-servants-of-the-penis, so when I read, say, a lesbian novel, I am continually concerned that people will assume that I'm just indulging a fetish, - and the same with a gay male novel (though the standard reaction to the first fetish is playful ribbing and 'me toos', and the second is mild discomfort, and muttering. Imagine that. honestly, the second is easier to stomach than the first, though).
ReplyDeleteDoes anyone know of a Hair Salon in or around Halifax that is open before 12pm on Sunday? ...the 28th of December-which is a Sunday. I am having a hard time finding...
ReplyDeleteI am so glad that I have always been curious about others and open to reading about such a wide variety of topics, and I am so grateful to have met people who are similarly like minded.
ReplyDeleteUm, can we please make "playing the Cass card" a thing? Please? Jill? Love it and this post and that everyone is welcome to read GLBTQ books.
ReplyDeleteWonderful post. I think it's crazy that people would question this. Books are for all people, no matter what the genre or category it falls under.
ReplyDeleteThe ending of this post DID make me giggle though because a lot of it applies to me too.
-Lauren
Great job! I sometimes get questions as well, but people in real life know for the most part that I read odd subjects so don't delve too far. And thankfully I have not received any emails like that - yikes. I love your response here, and am with you on all of it. Especially the comment about not being a train. Perfect!
ReplyDeleteI thought of you when I read this yesterday:
ReplyDelete“I’ve recently heard it argued that writers should tell stories only from a point of view that is their own, or that of a group to which they themselves belong. Writing from the point of view of someone ‘other’ is a form of poaching, the appropriation of material you haven’t earned and to which you have no right. Men, for instance, should not write as women; although it’s less frequently said that women should not write as men.
This view is understandable but, in the end, self-defeating. Not only does it condemn as thieves and imposter such writers as George Eliot, James Joyce, Emily Brontë and William Faulkner, and, incidentally, a number of the writers in this book; it is also inhibiting to the imagination in a fundamental way. It’s only a short step from saying we can’t write from the point of view of an ‘other’ to saying we can’t read that way either, and from there to the position that no one can really understand anyone else, so we might as well stop trying.” (Margaret Atwood, "Introduction: Reading Blind" in Curious Pursuits, London: Virago, 110-11)
Love this Em! Thanks for the quote; I'm going to have to pick up that one!
ReplyDelete