Great Reads | Columbus Metropolitan Library

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe

Benjamin Alire Sáenz

A lyrical novel about family and friendship from critically acclaimed author Benjamin Alire SÁenz. Aristotle is an angry teen with a brother in prison. Dante is a know-it-all who has an unusual way of looking at the world. When the two meet at the swimming pool, they seem to have nothing in common. But as the loners start spending time together, they discover that they share a special friendship--the kind that changes lives and lasts a lifetime. And it is through this friendship that Ari and Dante will learn the most important truths about themselves and the kind of people they want to be.

The Essential Guide to Gay and Lesbian Weddings

Tess Ayers; Paul Brown

The original wedding planner for gay and lesbian couplesas fun and inspiring as ever in an updated third edition!Wedding planning is never easybut for gay and lesbian couples, it presents unique challenges. On top of watching the budget and wrangling your family, you may be wondering: How should we word the invitations? Who can perform the ceremony? What should we say to those who ask, ...why?This trusty guidefirst published when legal same-sex marriage was just a dreamtackles all that and more. Tess Ayers and Paul Brown explain how to get the planning out of the way so you can enjoy your special day! Here are tips on finding the perfect venue, vows, outfits, cake, kit, and caboodle, as well as:Creative workarounds (Have you considered a home wedding?)Budget-friendly shortcuts (Supplement the tiered cake with a sheet cake.)The latest trends (How to buck the traditions that dont work for you.)And sage wisdom, with a wink! (Rule #1: If you invite them, they may come!)If youd rather stay crazy about each other than go crazy, The Essential Guide to Gay and Lesbian Weddings is for you!

Gay Men Don't Get Fat

Simon Doonan

Simon Doonan knows that when it comes to style, the gays are the chosen people. A second anthropological truth comes to him midway through a turkey burger with no bun, at an otherwise hetero barbecue: Do the straight people have any idea how many calories are in the guacamole? In this hilarious discourse on and guide to the well-lived life, Doonan goes far beyond the secrets to eating like the French-he proves that gay men really are French women, from their delight in fashion, to their brilliant choices in accessories and décor, to their awe-inspiring ability to limit calorie intake. A Gucci-wearing Margaret Mead at heart, Doonan offers his own inimitable life experiences and uncanny insights into makes gay people driven to live every day feeling their best, and proves that they have just as much-and possibly better-wisdom, advice, and inspiration beyond the same old diet and exercise tips.So put down that bag of Pirate's Booty and pick up this fierce and fabulous book. From slimming jaunts through Capri in the evening to an intrepid 'Bear' hunt (if you have to ask, you have to read this book and find out for yourself), Gay Men Don't Get Fat is the ultimate approach to a glamorous lifestyle-plus, you are guaranteed to laugh away the pounds!

Tessa Masterson Will Go to Prom

Brendan Halpin; Emily Franklin

Lucas and Tessa's friendship is the stuff of legend in their small Midwestern town. So it's no surprise when Lucas finally realizes his feelings for Tessa are more than friendship and he asks her to prom. What no one expected, especially Lucas, was for Tessa to come out as a lesbian instead of accepting his heartfelt invitation. Humiliated and confused, Lucas also feels betrayed that his best friend kept such an important secret from him. What's worse is Tessa's decision to wear a tastefully tailored tuxedo to escort her female crush, sparking a firestorm of controversy. Lucas must decide if he should stand on the sidelines or if he should stand by his friend to make sure that Tessa Masterson will go to prom. Emily Franklin and Brendan Halpin tackle both sides of a ripped-from-the headlines story to show that true friendship will triumph after all.

Straight: The Surprisingly Short History of Hetrosexuality

Hanne Blank

Like the typewriter and the light bulb, the heterosexual was invented in the 1860s and swiftly and permanently transformed Western culture. The idea of "the heterosexual" was unprecedented. After all, men and women had been having sex, marrying, building families, and sometimes even falling in love for millennia without having any special name for their emotions or acts. Yet, within half a century, "heterosexual" had become a byword for "normal," enshrined in law, medicine, psychiatry, and the media as a new gold standard for human experience. In this surprising chronicle, historian Hanne Blank digs deep into the past of sexual orientation, while simultaneously exploring its contemporary psyche. Illuminating the hidden patterns in centuries of events and trends, Blank shows how culture creates and manipulates the ways we think about and experience desire, love, and relationships between men and women. Ranging from Henry VIII to testicle transplants, from Disneyland to sodomy laws, and from Moby Dick to artificial insemination, the history of heterosexuality turns out to be anything but straight or narrow. With an eclectic scope and fascinating detail, Straight tells the eye-opening story of a complex and often contradictory man-made creation that is all too often assumed to be an irreducible fact of biology. From the Hardcover edition.

Gypsy Boy: My Life in the Secret World of the Romany Gypsies

Mikey Walsh

In a shocking memoir that is equal parts "Angela's Ashes" and "Running with Scissors, Gypsy Boy" reveals what life is really like among the Romany Gypsies in England. A revelation. Moving, terrifying, funny and brilliant.--Stephen Fry.

Hood: A Novel

Emma Donoghue

From the "New York Times"-bestselling author of "Room, Hood" is a graceful tale of coming to terms with loss. 336 pp. 40,000 print.

Eminent Outlaws: The Gay Writers Who Changed America

Christopher Bram

In the years following World War II, a small group of gay writers established themselves as literary power players, fueling cultural changes that would resonate for decades to come, and transforming the American literary landscape forever. InEMINENT OUTLAWS, novelist Christopher Bram brilliantly chronicles the rise of gay consciousness in American writing. Beginning with a first wave of major gay literary figures-Tennessee Williams, Gore Vidal, Truman Capote, Allen Ginsberg, and James Baldwin-he shows how (despite criticism and occasional setbacks) these pioneers set the stage for new generations of gay writers to build on what they had begun: Christopher Isherwood, Edmund White, and Tony Kushner, among them. Weaving together the crosscurrents, feuds, and subversive energies that provoked these writers to greatness,EMINENT OUTLAWSis a rich and essential work. With keen insights, it takes readers through fifty years of momentous change: from a time when being a homosexual was a crime in forty-nine states and into an age of same-sex marriage and the end of Don't Ask, Don't Tell.

The Letter Q: Queer Writers' Notes to Their Younger Selves

Sarah Moon (Editor); James Lecesne (Editor)

In this anthology, 63 award-winning authors including Michael Cunningham, Gregory Maguire, David Levithan, and Armistead Maupin make imaginative journeys into their pasts, telling their younger selves what they would have liked to know then about their lives as lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgendered people.

Remembering Christmas

Tom Mendicino, Frank Anthony Polito and Michael Salvatore

This wistful, gay anthology explores how "home for the holidays" can take you back physically and mentally. The men in these novellas by Mendicino, Frank Anthony Polito, and Michael Salvatore have season-specific reasons to reflect on and reconnect with their pasts.

I Am J

Cris Beam

"Hola, Jeni." J spun. His stomach clenched hard, as though he'd been hit. It was just the neighbor lady, Mercedes. J couldn't muster a hello back, not now; he didn't care that she'd tell his mom he'd been rude.She should know better. Nobody calls me Jeni anymore. J always felt different. He was certain that eventually everyone would understand who he really was: a boy mistakenly born as a girl. Yet as he grew up, his body began to betray him; eventually J stopped praying to wake up a "real boy" and started covering up his body, keeping himself invisible - from his family, from his friends...from the world. But after being deserted by the best friend he thought would always be by his side, J decides that he's done hiding - it's time to be who he really is. And this time he is determined not to give up, no matter the cost. An inspiring story of self-discovery, of choosing to stand up for yourself, and of finding your own path - readers will recognize a part of themselves in J's struggle to love his true self.

A Queer Thing Happened to America: And What a Long, Strange Trip It's Been

Michael L. Brown

Forty years ago, most Americans said they didn't know anyone who was homosexual and claimed to know little or nothing about homosexuality. Today, there's hardly a sitcom without a prominent gay character, movies like Milk and Brokeback Mountain have won Oscars, and even People magazine celebrated the marriage of Ellen Degeneres and Portia DeRossi. A Queer Thing Happened to America chronicles the amazing transformation of America over the last forty years, and addresses the question head-on: Is there really a gay agenda, or is it a fiction of the religious right? Written in a lively and compelling style, but backed with massive research and extensive interaction with the GLBT community, this forthright and yet compassionate book looks at the extraordinary impact gay activism has had on American society. This could easily be the most controversial book of the decade. Read it and find out why the publishing world was afraid to touch it.

Girls Club

Sally Bellerose

This insightful novel of independence and family ties is the latest winner of the Bywater Prize for Fiction.

Youth in Crisis: What Everyone Should Know about Growing up Gay

Mitchell Gold (Editor); Mindy Drucker (Editor)

What is it like to be called an abomination by your religious leaders? To live in fear of losing your family's love? To be afraid to go to school because of the torment that awaits you? To lie to everyone about whom you love? In Youth in Crisis, Mitchell Gold and Mindy Drucker asked forty LGBT Americans--from celebrities to youth-- to share their very personal answers to these difficult questions. Many discuss their long-buried feelings here for the first time. Several young adults opened up about suicide attempts, depression, fear, and isolation that are still a part of growing up gay. Gold calls this a silent epidemic and a mental health crisis affecting millions of gay teens. And he emphasizes that this crisis can be solved, with compassion and fair-mindedness-and by getting those whose words and deeds cause harm to finally stop. The book's contributors reveal what made them feel alone and unloved - and at times so hopeless suicide seemed the only option. And they suggest ways to help the next generation of teens. These stories are also lessons in perseverance and achievement, showing inner strength and inspiring us all with their triumphs. Learn the harm religion-based prejudices cause, see the dangers of "cures" like reparative therapy, and get insight into the question of sin and homosexuality that divides many churches and families today. Our book will help you become better able to help gay kids in your family, congregation, or classroom.

Gay in America

Scott Pasfield (Photographer)

Photographer Scott Pasfield traveled 54,000 miles across all fifty states over a two-year span gathering stories and documenting the lives of 140 gay men from all walks of life. At turns joyful and somber, reflective and celebratory, each narrative and image is an enlightening look into the variety of gay life in the United States. Pasfield's striking and perceptive portraits reflect the same beautiful diversity found in any sampling of our population. Each of these men is unique and whole, complex and fallible, just as we all are. They come in every size and shape, every religion, color, profession, and background. There are farmers, writers, doctors, lawyers, artists, teachers, students; there are fathers and husbands, activists, and business men. Some are successful, some are struggling, some are political, some are wealthy, some are wounded, and some are deeply content. Their commonality draws from a single shared trait: their homosexuality. These are men who are attracted to men, and have chosen not to disguise that truth. For many, there have been harsh consequences to this decision, but also deep rewards. The message that prevails is one of great hope that true equality is close within our reach, if only we would grasp it.

Sparks: The Epic, Completely True Blue, (Almost) Holy Quest of Debbie

S. J. Adams

Do you feel lost? Confused? Alone? (Circle one): Yes or No. The Church of Blue can help. We are not a cult. $5 for a holy quest is a good deal. Since sixth grade, Debbie Woodlawn has nursed a secret, heart-searing crush on her best friend, Lisa. But all those years of pretending to enjoy Full House reruns and abstinence rallies with Lisa go down the drain when her friend hooks up with Norman, the most boring guy at school. This earth-shattering event makes Debbie decide to do the unthinkable: confess her love to Lisa. And she has to do it tonight-before Lisa and Norman go past "the point of no return." So Debbie embarks on a quest to find Lisa. Guiding the quest are fellow students/detention hall crashers Emma and Tim, the founding (and only) members of the wacky Church of Blue. Three chases, three declarations of love, two heartbreaks, a break-in, and five dollars worth of gas later, Debbie has been fully initiated into Bluedaism-but is there time left to stop Lisa and Norman from going too far? Click here to view the book trailer for Sparks.