Good Gay Themed Novel to Read

Dancer from the Dance, by Andrew Holleran. Anything by him, really.

Exactly how many books can you read while you are "away"? You have a list already.

I can’t believe they left out Mary Renault. Her 1953 novel, The Charioteer, has issues which I won’t discuss to avoid plot spoilers, but it and several of her historical novels were groundbreaking.

Hello?

This is a vague request. Something fun? Something serious? Something romantic?

How Long Has This Been Going On? - Ethan Mordden Like People In History - Felice Picano

Both are fictional history of gay men from the 1940s - 1950s through the 90s.

The Line of Beauty, by Alan Hollinghurst.

It’s set in Thatcher-era London and really captures the moment.

The Well of Loneliness by Radclyffe Hall

Definitely R7 's suggestion of 'Line of Beauty' and anything else by Hollinghurst. I just read 'The Great Believers' by Rebecca Makkai and thought it was a really good read. 1980s era AIDS in Chicago, and concurrent storyline about a missing daughter in present day Paris.

Want sex scenes?

"As Meat Loves Salt" by Marie McCann is great, even has some hot old timey sex scenes. "The Lacuna" by Barbara Kingsolver (Wrote poison wood bible) is great and has Diego Rivera and Friday Kahlo as backgrounds characters. Those are the gay ones that come to mind.

Notre-Dame des Fleurs by Genet, if you're kinky and sophisticated.

I liked David Leavitt’s “While England Sleeps” far more than the recommended “Lost Language of Cranes.” Add Michael Chabon’s “Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay” and Jamie O’Neill’s “At Swim, Two Boys.”

At swim two boys by Jamie O'Neill

"The Nothingness of Ben" by Brad Boney. A relatively recent novel that is very gay themed, and I thought had a bit of depth to it. I enjoyed it greatly.

Christodora by Tim Murphy

The Great Believers by Rebecca Makkai

The Heart's Invisible Furies by John Boyne

Mother of Sorrows by Richard McCann

Grief by Andrew Holleran

We the Animals by Justin Torres

At Danceteria and Other Stories by Philip Dean Walker

The Folding Star by Alan Hollinghurst

Buried Alive by Edmund White

I loved We the animals, but to be fair it deals with gay themes only at the very end of the novel

Adam by Ariel Schrag - main character is a straight teen boy who poses as a trans male to have sex with girls. I know lots of people who hate this book with a passion, especially the ending, but either way it will draw a strong reaction from you.

You'll scream. You'll cry. You'll cum(bucket loads).

A good gay themed a novel to read?

gay-themed, OP.

If you want a quick, easy read with lots of naked boys, cock talk & sex......

MY BARE NAKED HEART - David Avery

A sexy & sweet novel about two1950's college students in lust & love.

Blue Heaven by Joe Keenan (who was also executive story editor of the TVshow Frasier)

[quote]Mother of Sorrows by Richard McCann

One of the very, very best books of gay short stories ever published. Every single one of you ought to read this marvelous, intelligent book.

New this year is the novel Leading Men, which follows Tennessee Williams and his lover Frank Merlo from their life in Italy attending Truman Capote’s soirée, up to the present day with the character of a Swedish movie star, who has an unpublished play written by Williams commentating his relationship with Frank. It’s perfect for beach/ vacation reading having some literary content, but an interest fast read.

I also highly recommend short stories for traveling since you go through periods of killing time in transit, but then stretches where you are busy and may not be likely to sustain a more complex novel or non-fiction work.

Invisible Life by E. Lynn Harris (one of the books on the list) is an amazing book. It's been 20 years since I read it, but it was amazing. Harris' followup book, not so much.

I need to find more GLBT action/adventure books to read since I'm currently writing a gay action/adventure book series.

And if you don't mind horror/zombies, I have to recommend my friend Soren's series. He's an amazing writer. Even though I hate zombies, I put that aside to read Soren's books.

[quote]I can’t believe they left out Mary Renault. Her 1953 novel, The Charioteer, has issues which I won’t discuss to avoid plot spoilers, but it and several of her historical novels were groundbreaking.

A previous acquaintance of mine lent me a copy of The Mask Of Apollo. It wasn't half bad.

Dead Europe, by Christos Tsiolkas.

Even better, though: Loaded, by Christos Tsiolkas.

I'm actually surprised by the list as I've read two of the books he mentions. Of course I read Armistead Maupin's "Tales of the City" and Baldwin's "Giovanni's Room".

Another vote for Giovanni's Room.

I just read it recently, and I wasn't sure what to expect, maybe a white-washing or veil over the gay aspects, but it was gay from the first page to the last and I really loved it.

r29, I just ordered Barracuda by Christos Tsiolkas. My library only had it and The Slap on kindle.

Thanks.

Another vote for At Danceteria and Othr Stories. It starts very coke-y, bitchy and fast-paced with a story centered on Halston, DL fave Liza, and Andy Warhol, but with each page, the shadow of AIDS grows large over the characters and the book really deepens. I found the story about Rock Hudson just heartbreaking. They are short stories but the whole thing almost reads like a novel.

Joe Kennan’s follow-up novels after Blue Heaven are wonderful as well.

I’m looking forward to checking out Leading Men. Thanks for the suggestion, R26.

If you like wit, sarcasm and keen observations about (mostly) middle aged gay men try one of Stephen McCauley's books.

Christadora was grating and overly long. Didn't like it all.

Here are some good ones: Song of Apollo The Gustav Sonata The Line of Beauty While England Sleep The Stranger's Child

Thanks, r35. I just got The Gustav Sonata (which has nothing to do with that Mahler named Gustav). It's about the friendship between a Jewish boy and a non-Jewish boy during WWII.

"It is a powerful and deeply moving addition to the beloved oeuvre of one of our greatest contemporary novelists."

My favorite Hollinghurst novel is "The Swimming Pool Library", which I think is his first. Made me want to read the rest of his books.

I second the votes for The Charioteer (Renault), The Swimming-Pool Library (Hollinghurst), and At Swim, Two Boys (O’Neill).

I also recommend Moffie, by Andre Carl Van der Merwe, an autobiographical tale of a South African soldier coming to terms with his homosexuality in the 1980s. But be warned: it’s tough going at times.

Maurice by E.M Forster

Front Runner (which is on the list) by Patricia Nell Warren is a fantastic novel, though it takes a bit to get into it. Given it's content it's shocking that it was published yet alone became a NYT Bestseller. It's sad that this novel has largely gone forgotten.

R27 E. Lynn's Invisible Life is a great novel! Harris' best novels after this were If The World Were Mine and Any Way the Wind Blows. I was very upset to learn that he had died.

R40 wanted to read more books about E. Lynn's main character's "jimmie."

I second R14 but hasten to add that MIRACLE OF THE ROSE is the best Genet novel and is to be savoured.

Great gay-themed novels with a side of history:

Mary Renault's Alexander Trilogy, "Fire From Heaven," "The Persian Boy" and "Funeral Games."

"The Boy Who Picked the Bullets Up," the Vietnam War from the perspective of a corpsman. Lots of hot sex, little romance, great humor. Warning, casual racism that's in keeping with the times but might be upsetting to modern readers.

"Wingmen" by Ensan Case, an epic WW2 romance about two Navy aviators who become lovers. High emotion written effectively with great economy, though the sex is offstage unfortunately. Spoiler alert, they survive the war and remain a couple, but have to contend with postwar attitudes toward homosexuality. Written by a genuine gay man who was also a military pilot himself.

J’ADORE Christodora.

"Was" by Geoff Ryman. Moving interweaving of three narratives, one of them about a gay man with AIDS in the 80s.

[quote]"The Boy Who Picked the Bullets Up," the Vietnam War from the perspective of a corpsman. Lots of hot sex, little romance, great humor. Warning, casual racism that's in keeping with the times but might be upsetting to modern readers.

Excellent novel.

[quote]J’ADORE Christodora.

MOI, AUSSI. I would say "ignore the naysayers," but I know of other widely admired books I just wasn't able to get into (At Play, Two Boys).

I'm still waiting for Christodora and The Gustav Sonata to be translated

Christadora tried to be a novel-form 'Angels in America,' but ended up feeling like a TV mini-series; trite and limited while presuming to be epic. Nice book cover, though.

Andrew Sean Greer "Less"

R48, would you recommend any of the other AIDS novels or collections that have been mentioned on this thread? Or even ones that haven’t been mentioned here.

Less is a thoroughly forgettable entertainment and the fact that it won the Pulitzer absolutely astonishes me. Is American literature so bad that Less is considered a great novel???

If Dylan can win the Nobel...

r51: ditto!

The author is Steven Saylor, who’s a gay historian.

It takes place in pre-Christian Rome. It got good review in the NYTimes.

Thomas Mann's, Death in Venice and The Magic Mountain

R51: Frankly, i think it was way better than Tinkers

I tried twice to read [italic]Less[/italic] , and failed. What was [italic]Tinkers[/italic]? I don't see it mentioned here.

r58, it was a Pulitzer Prize-winner 10 years ago.

So "Less" is less?

What made you mention Tinkers in the context of Less, r59? Is there a gay element?

For the elderlezzen, Tove Jansson’s FAIR PLAY is an elegant & sympathetic read. The characters are beautiful rendered examples of complex older women living independent & headstrong but quiet Islander lives.

A Boys Own Story by Edmund White

r57, does Tinkers have a gay element to the story?

Has anyone mentioned A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara, a big book with a big wallop.

Go back and reread the first word of the headline, r65.

I liked A Little Life, but I’m not sure I could ever read it again. It was almost like a traumatic experience reading it. I felt like I needed therapy afterwards.

R61: God no, Tinkers doesn't have any gay element. It was mentioned that Less didn't deserve the Pulitzer and i mentioned a Pulitzer that i liked way less that Less. Tinkers always benefited for the fact that being a small novel from a small publisher but the truth is that novel is as uneven as The Goldfinch but with way less pages.

A little life is a pure exercise of masochism. Some people love it, some people hate it, and i loved some parts and a hated others. Yanagihara knows how make the reader care for her characters but in my opinion that novel would benefit a lot if she would have toned down the melodrama

Confessions of a Mask - Mishima Yukio (really good, can't believe Mishima isn't more well known here, his whole life and persona is right down DL's alley: literature Nobel nominee right-wing closeted nut who attempted a half-hearted coup d'état then killed himself at the military camp after being ignored, almost married who would later become the Empress of Japan, was obsessed with St Sebastian and sadistic homoerotic imagery, took up bodybuilding at like 30 to chase hunks on the low and overcompensate for his squeaky-clean image, went to gay bars to "research" for his book, his wife denied right up until her death his husband's homosexuality and to this day his children still threaten to sue anyone who tries to prove or even insinuate their dad was a fag)

Forbidden Colors - Mishima Yukio (the perfect book for a gay misogynist)

The German - Lee Thomas

The Lure - Felice Picano

The Thief's Journal - Jean Genet

For a Lost Soldier - Rudi van Dantzig (very creepy, book's way more fucked up than the movie)

The Great Mirror of Male Love - Ihara Saikaku (can you believe the Japanese were writing gay fiction back in 1687, a historical piece)

My Dear Boy: Gay Love Letters through the Centuries - Rictor Norton (not a novel but it's an amazing read)

I was impressed with Better Angel by Forman Brown (as Richard Meeker) 1901-1996. Considering the fact that it was written in 1933, the happy ending is exceptional. It's tame by contemporary standards so don't expect any rumpy-pumpy.

I adored both of Rakesh Satyal's novels; a pre-teen gay in 'Blue Boy' who wants to become Kali, and a suburban South-Asian family drama (with a gay son) in "No One..."

He's also a sweetie and a nice person who deserves his awards.

Call Me by Your Name.

R72: I know i'm in a minority, but i hated it.

At the same time i loved Aciman's writing so i thinking on reading Enigma variations

[quote]The Heart's Invisible Furies by John Boyne

I'm reading this now and really enjoying it.

[quote] can you believe the Japanese were writing gay fiction back in 1687, a historical piece?

What am I, sashimi?

Here is a quote pulled directly from the thousands of pages of my rather famous novel, now around a millennia old. Perhaps you've heard of it; while a humble piece penned about my own small milieu it is considered the first true example of the novel form in the history of recorded literature. Enjoy.

[quote] “Well, you at least must not abandon me." Genji pulled the boy down besides him. The boy was delighted, such were Genji’s youthful charms. Genji for his part, or so one is informed, found the boy more attractive than his chilly sister.

"Dancer from the Dance" was mentioned upthread, and I also like Holloran's "Nights in Aruba" a great deal. It has a dreamy quality to it.

God Tinkers! What utter shit. It was worse than Less. Though Less was at least readable.

I’ve had Tinkers on my shelf for years and never read it. Kind of curious now. Is it true that the author’s graduate school mentor was on the Pulitzer Prize committee the year he unexpectedly won?

Speaking of Pulitzer Prize contenders, any gay or gay-themed books in the running this year? Or since they gave it to Less and a white gay last year, do they consider that demographic taken care of for the next decade?

A list like that should have DANCER FROM THE DANCE without question, and should not have TALES OF THE CITY, except maybe as a beach read. Holleran's words are lyrical , his characters are full and memorable, while Maupin's are mostly flat and forgettable. And Maupin is way too delighted with himself for breaking ground which was already broken.

Eric Garber (aka Andrew Holleran) is a friend and mentor of mine and I’m sure he’d be very flattered to know that you guys speak of him so highly. He is a very sweet, gentle, and extremely witty person. Some of my favorites times have been sitting with him at the fountain at Dupont Circle and discussing life, movies, gay culture, etc. I wonder if he even knows Maupin. I’ll have to ask him.

R80 I'd love to know how he picked the pen name and spelling, as it happens to be the exact name and spelling as my great grandfather from Galway.

Shit Eric Garber/ Andrew Holleran lives in DC??

Eric/Andrew is a hero of mine. After a few meetings, I was able to calm down and just talk to him. But yeah, "Dancer..." a classic.

If you want to dig up a good beach read, find a copy of Christian McLaughlin's Sex Toys of the Gods. Its a silly, raunchy homage to the likes of Valley of the Dolls featuring a fresh from Ohio twink, a Broadway actress, and a frighteningly ambitious agent's assistant all trying to make it big in 1990's LA. I also recommend Jordan L Hawk's Whyborne & Griffin series. Yes, it's another gay oriented series of supernatural thrillers written by a frau - but 7 books in I'm still hooked.

R78 I heard that about Tinkers too--Marilynne Robinson was Harding's teacher (maybe advisor) at Iowa and was on the committee that year. That said, I like Tinkers a lot, though I understand why others are less enthusiastic about it.

I think Rebecca Makkai's The Great Believers might have a chance, though it may have lost momentum by now. I don't think she's gay (or I haven't read anything that identifies her as such), but it's about the AIDS epidemic.

I could imagine a queer poet of color winning and being a finalist.

Ryu Murakami touches on such themes, but generally inside a larger overarching framework about identity and the beleaguered sexuality of the straight marginalised (I.e prostitutes, the poor).

My favorite is the Tokyo Decadence anthology, also called Topaz elsewhere.

I think Philippe Besson's Lie with me is going to be published this month in the USA.

I didn't read it yet but it was a big success in France

Sacred Lips of the Bronx by Douglas Sadownick is a fun read.

[italic]"He was so innocent . . . until he fell captive to the brooding master and sinister secrets of GAYWYCK." [/italic]

GAYWYCK, the gay lit REBECCA, by Vincent Virga.

[quoute]When Gaywyck first appeared in 1980, it was hailed as the first gay gothic novel. It was my intention to write a novel in a genre I loved with gay characters in order to show that genres know no gender. Gaywyck is a literary game. I used all of the literary devices I could steal from all of the great gothics and larded the text and dialogue with dozens of quotes from the most famous novels (“I’ve never seen so many beautiful shirts!”) and movies (“Nobody’s ever called me darling before!”), works of art that deal with heterosexual love exclusively. Timeless lines that work for Bette Davis work just as well for the book’s narrator, Robert Whyte. (A British scholar wrote his Master’s thesis in the early 90s on this aspect of the book; he caught a lot of them but not all. I doubt if I could find every one now, 27 years later.)

[quote]People forget that Jane Eyre caused a huge scandal when it first appeared in 1850; it was denounced from English pulpits because Jane, a mere woman, boldly exclaims that she will take care of herself rather than subjugate herself to Mr. Rochester’s care--as his mistress—an offer that also set England’s moral hairs on fire! (He has to lose his sight in a fire before he can see Jane’s true value.) Still indomitable is her reply--"I care for myself. The more solitary, the more friendless, the more unsustained I am, the more I will keep the law given by God; sanctioned by man. I will hold to the principles received by me when I was sane, and not mad--as I am now. Laws and principles are not for the times when there is no temptation: they are for such moments as this, when body and soul rise in mutiny against their rigour; stringent are they; inviolate they shall be. If at my individual convenience I might break them, what would be their worth? They have a worth--so I have always believed; and if I cannot believe it now, it is because I am insane--quite insane: with my veins running fire, and my heart is beating faster than I can count its throbs. Preconceived opinions, foregone determinations, are all I have at this hour to stand by: there I plant my foot" (pp. 322-23). Robert, of course, with his veins running fire rejects all preconceived opinions and forgone determinations. At the end of the book, with his veins still and forever running fire, heterosexual love for him is “a variation” of his love for Donough—“I was so full of love for him—so serene about the way we were, the way we thought—the way we felt—that I burst into laughter.” - the author

The Michael Nava 'Henry Rios' detective books have been reissued and are available as multi-actor podcasts. He's also a great guy.

The book of getting even by Benjamin Taylor

"Days Without End" by Sebastian Barry

Phillip Dean Walker lives in my building...I don't know him but that queen looks really insufferable. Anyone know him?

[quote]I think Philippe Besson's Lie with me is going to be published this month in the USA.

Translated from French to English by none other than Molly Ringwald!

R94, I just read about that in Entertainment Weekly and ordered my copy. Can’t wait!

R95: i ordered my copy in spanish too. It was a big success in France

Only professionally, R93, but he seems to be a decent guy.

Dressed for Death by Donna Leon. Great murder mystery set in Venice.

The Cool Part of His Pillow

Here you go, OP. Rubyfruit Jungle.

[quote]Sacred Lips of the Bronx by Douglas Sadownick is a fun read.

Really good book. Better than "fun read" IMO.

[quote]Phillip Dean Walker lives in my building...I don't know him

So talk to him next time you see him. You might read At Danceteria first.

Read Giovanni's Room after coming out and loved it. Don't read The City and the Pillar, you'll cringe. Only interesting for when it was written.

Any good gay themed thrillers or crime novels?

R104, Dodging and Burning by John Copenhaver.

For a set of gay-themed thriller or crime novels I'd try the Dave Brandstetter books by Joseph Hansen, himself a gay man

Loved LIE WITH ME. Short read but very moving. Enjoyed it more than CALL ME BY YOUR NAME.

Alan Hollinghurst rightly cited above for "Line of Beauty" also recently published The Sparsholt Affair. My favorite is his first, The Swimming Pool Library

MYRA BRECKINRIDGE and the sequel MYRON. They are both terrific books and more than gay enough.

The Catch Trap by Marion Zimmer Bradley. Two male circus performers who fall in love. Can get a bit melodramatic in a couple of places, but one of my favorite reads. May be hard to find.

R110, I love that book.

r51 I am still angry that I listened to critics and purchased the audible for Less. I'm still trying to get through that bore.

I’m reading Allen Barnett’s The Body and Its Dangers (1990), a short story collection heavily featuring AIDS. It’s really excellent. It was Barnett’s only book. He died from the disease in 1991.

EDGAR AND LUCY, though not a gay book, per se, is a wonderful read by gay author Victor Lodato, the story of the strong relationship of a mother and her young son (who one can easily see growing up gay in a sequel).

I also loved CHRISTODORA. I'll admit that it does almost seem like it was written to be a TV mini-series and I'm hoping we see it as such soon.

Not Tin Man.

Pornhub

Huigy

R115: I had no idea about Tin Man, but When god was a rabbit is a very enjoyable reading (with an important gay character)

I like my gays to behave in ways that are gay, r118. The tin man married a woman instead of the man he was so clearly in love with. I kept waiting for the story to right itself, but it just kept getting more and more ridiculous, ending in total incomprehensibility. It made me wonder if women shouldn't stop writing gay fiction entirely. I will never read another anything by her.

Philip Dean Walker is reading at Club Cumming tonight at the Enclave reading series with the legendary Frederic Tuten, who is one of my all-time favorites.

Stella Maris and Other Key West Stories by Michael Carroll.

I enjoyed Danceteria...it was a bit light but I liked it. Would be a good summer read.

I also recommend "Danceteria" as a good summer read...see Walker read live if you can...he's a square-jawed, hunky guy.

"That Was Something" by Dan Callahan is romantic and sexy.

"Christodora" is a fun page-turner.

Garth Greenwell's "What Belongs To You" is as good as its hype.

Happy Pride (Reading) Month!

A History of Shadows. You won't be sorry you took the plunge.

The Flight Profile...didn't realize it was a gay novel before I bought it, but it is Blanche!

The Beauty Of Men by Andrew Holleran

R125, I love that cover. It kind of reminds me of the late ‘70s cover of Felice Picano’s THE LURE (which also belongs on this thread).

[QUOTE] Philip Dean Walker is reading at Club Cumming tonight at the Enclave reading series with the legendary Frederic Tuten, who is one of my all-time favorites.

Debbie Harry made a surprise appearance at this reading series last night and read something!

Yes to Hollinghurst, Aciman, early White, Holleran (read GRIEF, although not specifically gay-themed), and many others mentioned above. I'll add the recent COURTING MR. LINCOLN by Louis Bayard. Also Alan Bennett, whose novels are short but charming.

I have several waiting, The Sparsholt affair, A natural, Enigma variations, Days without end and Guapa

I just started The Sparsholt Affair and am enjoying it.

Can someone recommend something from the mid-20th century?

Gore Vidal's "City and the Pillar" published 1948

R133 I didn't check the other responses but you will love "A Single Man" by Christopher Isherwood. Definitely skip the movie from several years ago- it's trash.

I would recommend David Leavitt's "Arkansas," which is a collection of incredibly good short stories. "The Term Paper Artist" is one of my favorite short stories of all time.

[italic]I would like to flee like a wounded hart to Arkansas. --Oscar Wilde[/italic]

I would add two by John Weir - "The Irreversible Decline of Eddie Socket", and "What I Did Wrong."

And a second plug for ANYTHING written by Andrew Holleran. So frustrated that he moved to DC just after I moved away. Though I'd probably be a bumbling idiot if I were to ever meet him.

How to be a Normal Person - TJ Klune

Skinned Alive by Edmund White

Red, White, and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston

In September, the Light Changes by Andrew Holleran

Read by Strangers by Philip Dean Walker

Less by Andrew Sean Greer is the best gay book I’ve read in 20 years.

[quote] Can someone recommend something from the mid-20th century?

Giovanni's Room, by James Baldwin (one of the greatest novels of the 20th century, period)

Myra Breckenridge, by Gore Vidal

A Single Man, by Christopher Isherwood

Radcliffe, by David Storey

The Bell, by Iris Murdoch

The Talented Mr. Ripley, by Patricia Highsmith

City of Night, by John Rechy

GO DOWN, AARON

“Third-sex slave to the Third Reich’s brutal lust”

Anyone read Angus Wilson, a mid-century Brit whose novels are much admired? I've collected a few, but have yet to dive in.

Anything by Alan Hollinghurst really, but I just finished "The Sparsholt Affair." It was good.

I'm reading "Moffie" right now. The author is André Carl van der Merwe. It's about a nineteen-year-old conscript in the South African Defense Force in the 1970s. He's coming to terms with being gay and in love. It's good, but I wouldn't call it a beach read.

For a good, enjoyable summer read, get the series by Timothy James Beck. You'll shed some tears of joy and sorrow.

I really am so sorry to have recommended GO DOWN, AARON!

It seems in fact it [italic]did not[/italic] get great reviews (!!)

[quote]GOODREADS: There is only one reason to read this hyped, illusive book: the (hopefully) only time someone has used the metaphor "hot missile of erect love". It has it's so-bad-it's-good moments, mostly through incredibly stupid young men, cartoonish nazis and awful new words for dicks, but the rest of the time it's a poorly written, thoughtless piece of pulp, starring literature's possibly most hapless hero. But what can you expect from gay nazi porn?

Can't believe I forgot about Colm Toibin! Doesn't always write about gay characters (BROOKLYN), but I highly recommend THE MASTER and BLACKWATER LIGHTSHIP. Also, Thomas Mallon's FELLOW TRAVELERS is superb.

r143, I read "Anglo-Saxon Attitudes" by Angus Wilson. It's VERY funny.

R140 Less was both funny and poignant. No wonder it won the Pulitzer.

Mark Merlis! Solid novels of years-ago gay men's lives, plus a Greek demigod gogo guy.

There are so many good gay romances these days. Look at Dreamspinner or Carina. So many fun titles

Dreamspinner stopped paying many of their writers, so no thanks.

Also, "good" gay romances are not easy to find. If it's got a double initial author name like "E.J. Tungston" it's a straight Trumpian frau in Iowa with a husband who can support her hobby.

Some of us prefer to support GAY MALE authors.

Dreamspinner stopped paying writers royalties owed, or withdrew titles from sale that weren't selling?

I think it was royalties. Check TJ Klune's social media (he's a male author of romances and other genres).

[quote]r45 "Was" by Geoff Ryman. Moving interweaving of three narratives, one of them about a gay man with AIDS in the 80s.

This was well written, but I found it UNRELIEVEDLY depressing. Each one of the three plots is a downer.

Highly imaginative, though.

I loved Mother of Sorrows but it wasn't really short stories. I am reading Out East and it's OK.

Less is totally underwhelming.

R140, please get out more.

Lots of good suggestions on here, add anything by N.R. Walker

R156 - you’re fucked up. “Less” is the Pulitzer Prize-winning best book of the decade.

R159, we’ve discussed Less extensively on Datalounge. Most of us were underwhelmed by it.

R160 - well then the bitches here who “discussed Less extensively” are too picky.

The History of Living Forever by Jake Wolff- well-written, has a few science fiction elements but mainly focuses on the characters.

r159/r161, I'd love to know what other books you think are wonderful, if you think the mediocre Less is such a great work of art.

Dreamspinner is having some trouble. So many authors think their work is so important. How DARE Dreamspinner delay royalties? They haven't published with big publishers where it's often the same game. I've read the emails from Dreamspinner. They seem like they are being honest although they clearly have problems. Looks like many people are abandoning them which i understand but all the high and might stuff on Twitter is annoying.

Are there any good horror/thriller novels with a gay protagonist that don’t feature vampires? I’ve been on the hunt for one for ages. I’ve waded through so much shit. Story of my life, really. x

I'm not a big sci-fi fan, but am intrigued by Samuel Delaney. Any recommendations?

Numbers by John Rechy

I got to part 3 of The Sparsholt affair and lost interest. The first part was best, but I'm a sucker for stories set in wartime Britain (The Charioteer included).

As this book hasn't been recommended before - Flower of Iowa by Lance Ringel (a gay man). It's about a young American and Brit soldier who fall in love on the front lines of WW1. There are many ancillary characters, mostly well fleshed out. It's a long book but is a quick read, and the author does a good job of getting into an 18 year old soldier's head. The writing cannot remotely be compared to Hollinghurst or Baldwin, but that's a high standard to live up to. Stephen Fry had recommended it on twitter.

I also recently read Tin Man by Sarah Winman. Its about two friends and their relationships (with others and each other), and also how they handle grief and heartbreak. She has a gift for creating pictures with words. The writing is good and sticks with you but keep the Kleenex handy.

"I Once Had a Master" by John Preston

[QUOTE]Myra Breckenridge, by Gore Vidal

The sequel, called Myron, is really great, too.

HJ Magazine (Hand Jobs Magazine) was always my fave literature. It opened my eyes to uncle, cousin, and father sex, coach and principal sex, neighbor sex, minister sex, and most importantly, brother sex. I was devastated when they quit publishing this fine prose. The illustrations were quite artistic as well.

R171, are there any available on eBay?

Count me as another person who thought "Less" was not only not worthy of the Pulitzer, but was a horrible book from all angles.

R172 - I don’t know but I’m gonna check!! Thanks for the tip 😘

More suggestions, please.

Don't read Out East. It really sucks.

Has anyone read Red, White, and Royal Blue? I was given it but haven't gotten past the first chapter. Is it what I think it is: one of those women-written gay men are so cute books? I found the first chapter a chick lit mess but the person who gave it to me usually reads intelligent fare.

r177, those books should be burned.

I liked Stephen Saylor’s books placed in Rome, c. 10 BC.

Trash is sometimes fun, and this is total trash:

Another recommendation for The Swimming Pool Library. I might have to revisit that one.

I'm amused by the number of DLers easily impressed by overwrought gay fiction, simply because it's British.

R182, are you referring to Alan Hollinghurst? Any gay Brit authors you do like?

Garth Greenwell’s follow-up to What Belongs to You, entitled Cleanness, is coming out soon. It’s a continuation of the previous book (which is heavily based on Greenwell’s own life).

A Ladder to the Sky by John Boyne

Bump

bump bitch, have you read Andrew Holleran's [italic]Dancer from the Dance[/italic] yet?

R156: The big Delany novel is Dhalgren (=Grendel, as in Beowulf). Futuristic. Bisexual hero, very interesting. His weapon is an "orchid," worn on the arm and made of blades that can rip through anything.

It helps if you already know Beowulf, but it's not necessary.

I came here to suggest Joe Keenan's Blue Heaven, but [R24] beat me to it, so I'll second it instead.

I've read many of the books suggested in this thread. Some were good -Most were not. I don't understand "gay literature" at all. It seems we either get dull, pseudo-poetic psychological novels about the homoeroticism of shirt collars, pulpy trash historical fiction where impossibly beautiful boys live only to fling themselves at rich, older men, or outright porn. And all, all of it badly written.

Jo Keenan's books are well written, funny, and don't take themselves seriously. The same with Patrick Dennis (also highly recommended).

As a young gay man coming to terms with life in the 80s I read the usual books: The Best Little Boy in the World, The Front Runner, The Lost Language of Cranes, A Boy's Own Story, etc. No wonder there is a higher suicide rate among gay youth! Those books are thoroughly depressing -Offering little hope for a happy life. They reflect their time periods, but in today's world I think we should be putting out something a bit more life-and-happiness-affirming, where being realistic isn't the same as being bleak. Where being sexy doesn't mean porn fantasies. And, PLEASE, no more vampires and werewolves!

Blue Boy by Rakesh Satyal. A very engrossing book about a 6th grade Indian American kid growing up in Ohio and coming to terms with the fact that he's different from everyone else - in his ethnic background, in his intelligence and talent, and, most importantly, in his sexual orientation, which he doesn't even quite understand. I just finished it, and I love it. I will be looking for the book that Satyal just had published 2 years ago. No One Can Pronounce My Name.

Dancer from the Dance is superb.

R177, I’ve read Red White & Royal Blue. It’s glorified Prince William fanfic.

and not a mention of Paul Monette, so popular in the 80s/90s, is he totally passe and forgotten? too much about AIDS?

My recommendation: Forbidden Colors, Yukio Mishima

No mention of John Rechy? Sexual Outlaw was much better and more challenging than the college boy stuff that Seemed to kick off gay lit that got attention from the straight press.

Swimming Pool Diary is much better than Hollinghurst’s later books.

R192

Yes, I think many would recommend Paul Monette's 'Borrowed Time', though it's non-fiction.

r194 I stayed in the closet an extra year or two in the '70s on account of reading John Rechy's book about compulsively cruising in Griffith Park. I did not want to deal with that degree of loneliness and alienation.

I just saw your comment, and I think I love you R119. That book was so damn frustrating. And so unrealistic.

Thanks for all the great recs!

Steven Saylor is a Gay guy who has written a series about Ancient Rome. He is a historian so he depicts the culture as he tells a story. Not centered around Gays, but there is a fair amount of homosex. “A Murder on the Appian Way” got good NY Times review, and got me hooked, so I recommend it..

r194, I had the same reaction when i read City of Night in high school. I thought my future was ugly hookups, dark alley encounters, and the occasional physical abuse from some demented creep.

The LOON cover is hilarious.

I liked Holleran's "The Beauty of Men"

Denton Welch: "In Youth Is Pleasure"

"A tender and fierce account of boyhood and nascent homosexual desire

First published in 1945, In Youth Is Pleasure is a beautiful and unassuming coming-of-age novel by the English writer and painter Denton Welch (1915–48). Painfully sensitive and sad Orville Pym is 15 years old, and this novel recounts the summer holiday after his first miserable year at private school―but as in all of Welch’s work, what is most important are the details of his characters’ surroundings. Welch is a Proustian writer of uncanny powers of observation who, as William S. Burroughs wrote, “makes the reader aware of the magic that is right under his eyes.”

Film director John Waters includes this novel as one of his “Five Books You Should Read to Live a Happy Life If Something Is Basically the Matter with You,” and writes: “Maybe there is no better novel in the world than Denton Welch’s In Youth Is Pleasure. Just holding it in my hands, so precious, so beyond gay, so deliciously subversive, is enough to make illiteracy a worse social crime than hunger.”

Just finished the Welch. Loved it. Also halfway through SHUGGIE BAIN. Thick, beautiful prose, and dark poetry. Hope it gets a lot of attention.